A Cause To Die For
by Ichihime Kurosaki
Summary: "Don't die! Orihime, please, don't die! He's waiting for you. They're waiting for you. Dammit, I know you can hear me! Orihime!" Rukia screamed. She knew. Orihime knew she had to get up. Rukia didn't need to tell her. She had her cause and he was waiting for her. Her cause to die for was fighting for them and she would fight until the death with him for it... UNDER RECONSTRUCTION!
1. Morning Remembrance (present)

**A Cause To Die For…  
**

**Chapter 1: **

**Morning Remembrance **

**Author's Note:** This story will serve as a foundation or set-up for its counterpart that will take place ten years prior to it. This story takes place after ACTDF part I, and being the sequel, will have references that you won't understand because of it, but will be thoroughly explained. There is a new scenario opposite that of the story that it follows, but it is a continuance to the first. A bit confusing, I know, but I have written the story out completely and have chosen the best way to explain it – go backwards.

This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because I've resurrected several characters and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

The beginning of the story is almost ten years since Ichigo became SouTaichou of Soul Society. Then chapter 2 is one year and six months before what is happening in chapter 1, all leading up the chapter 1 (present). **If you want, since my inspiration for this chapter came from the song, you can listen to _Morning Remembrance _by Shiro Sagisu while reading.**

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo. The title off this chapter and the name of the song recommended listening to while reading belongs to the Shiro Sagisu.

* * *

The last thing she remembered were his soothing words in her ears… His strong, muscular arm wrapped around her torso and his other extended over her arm, his hand over hers. His silent plea, but encouraging gesture. His words…

_"It's okay, baby. I'm here now, Hime."_

He felt her body tremble and her knees give out. He held her body close to his and helped her stay in an upright position. He crushed her petite frame to his from behind and gave her all his support.

_"Let go. Just let go, and please don't die. Please."_

His voice trembled at the end. She wanted to reply. To chastise then tease him for acting like he wouldn't see her again, but she couldn't trust herself, since she didn't know herself. If she spoke, her voice, her words that always calmed him, would fail her.

_'Goodbye, love,' _she thought.

Then…

Everything went black...

* * *

She remembered the war, all the fighting, and screaming. Most of all though, she could envision her sight being clouded, smeared with the crimson pools surrounding her. The metallic taste in her mouth, and the cold feeling. All the bloodshed was unbearable… and most of it was theirs. It was that of the last remaining Quincy who fought along with the Gotei 13… the Taichou and fuku-taichou and… from her family. The battle was an atrociously bloody one.

Lady Luck must have decided she would not play a part in their victory; that they must earn it. Furthermore, her sister, Karma, must have demeaned it the perfect time to strike them for their sins, when it hurt the most… When they were all so vulnerable. Her strike was fierce, much like a cobra.

She was almost brought to tears as all the memories surged through her mind, as they flood her thoughts.

She recalled Rukia yelling out to her, pleading with her to not die. To not die for the sake of the twins, for her newborn waiting, ever so faithful, for Mommy and Daddy to come home… for her friends and family who wouldn't, ever, be able to move on if she died. For his sake…

_"For Ichigo's sake. For Ichigo, dammit, don't die. Because, he'll find a way to leave if you die, then everyone will suffer. Your kids. Your family. The Soul Society. They can't lose a SouTaichou like him – we can't afford to lose you either. Come on! I know you can hear me! Orihime!"_

Renji Abarai was there as well. He was the fuku-taichou of squad six, right under Kuchiki Taichou, as always. Still loyal. He was moving up. He was soon to become a Taichou. Renji squeezed Orihime's hand, his other arm around the sobbing Rukia. She wept into his body. He spoke to Orihime as well. They all spoke to her…

* * *

She could remember, but could not get up. She was steadily gaining consciousness… Just not fast enough, because the battle was still raging on, and not far from them. And no definite winner could be defined yet.

She had to remind herself of her cause to fight. To get back up from her falls. To continue with all her might.

Because she had her cause to die for and he was waiting for her…


	2. The Calm after The Storm

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 2:**

**The Calm after The Storm**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because I've resurrected several characters and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I must apologize for the way the first chapter uploaded. I had a couple of things in the story so the beginning could be easily identified but it wasn't uploaded as that so… I just hope it was enough to pick up on. I have tweaked several things, so don't jump down my throat and say there is no such thing or ask wtf is this, because I understand – trust me…

This chapter's name is _"The Calm after The Storm" _because it is after all the mess with Aizen, the Quincy invasion, and Orihime's "execution". Each of these subjects will explained in the story, but take place in part I. They have been at peace, with no large casualties, for seven to ten years.

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo.

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

In the heart of the Seireitei, in squad one's quarters, Kurosaki SouTaichou was reading the reports of a Hollow attack in one of the Rukongai districts. It was in the outskirts of the Soul Society, one of the outer, smaller districts. It was one of the few that actually liked Soul Reapers.

_'Tch' _he thought. _'They hate our guts, because we are supposedly arrogant, pompous bastards. But, they love us when we save them…'_ He chuckled inwardly.

His brow furrowed as he came across an interesting passage in Soi-Fon Taichou's report. It read: _'One of the inhabitants close to the attack site claims that this is not the first attack, but is one of several to have taken place. She was quite furious that we didn't take action sooner, but I made her aware of the fact that this is the first we have heard of these incidents. She then went on to let me know that I shouldn't fret for they were disposed of each time.' _

It suddenly clicked in his mind what was going on. They were sent there but… for a purpose unknown… Who was handling them though?

_'I wanna know why they were sent there. From these reports, it looks as if they came through a Garganta. Hueco Mundo, no doubt. Hmm… I'll have to confer with Soi-Fon tomorrow. I don't like that fact that we didn't know until several attacks later.' _

Snapping him from his thoughts was a confident knock on the door. _'That's Chōjirō, no doubt' _he thought.

"Come in," he called loudly.

"Kurosaki SouTaichou," the man knelt before him.

His fuku-taichou, Chōjirō Sasakibe, stood up.

"Kurosaki SouTaichou," he repeated. "I have escorted Kurosaki-okusan Taichou here, as you requested. Good day and… good luck." He bowed and turned to exit.

"Arigato, Chōjirō. See you tomorrow," he replied to his lieutenant, laughing a bit.

Ichigo Kurosaki, SouTaichou of the Gotei 13, stood up and walked around from behind his desk. He never thought he'd see the day, only in his wildest dreams, that he would be wearing a captain's haori. He was Captain-Commander.

Yama-jii (the deceased, ex-captain, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto) had told his lieutenant that when the time came, Ichigo Kurosaki was to take his place. No one else. Period. Exclamation point. Ichigo had been so shocked, nervous, yet happy all at once. Not once was he scared. That emotion didn't linger for but a minute when his wife – girlfriend then, wife now - told him he would be the absolute best SouTaichou ever. She'd told him that he was already a legend and his greatness would continue, and then be documented for future generations, if not already. She went as far as to compliment his leadership qualities and fighting experience and skills. His wife always had a way of over exaggerating things, but she got to him when no one else could. He was young, yes, but they reassured him that he would do his duties well and he would have help from those that have been around for centuries. He was truly grateful for that.

It was a historical event. The ceremony was amazing and the party after that was unforgettable. But the best part of that night, in his opinion, was his "gift" from his Hime.

He was retrieved from his reverie to see his very angry wife glaring at him. Well, her version of a glare. She was trying to muster up all of her anger while attempting to keep eye contact with her husband. He bit back his laugh but knew that his eyes, his facial expression, must have betrayed him because she screamed with all her might at him. He had to admit that, at times, she scared him. The almighty SouTaichou, with Soul Reaping and Hollow capabilities while still human, brought down by a woman. Everyone joked at his expense because of this. They said she had him wrapped around her finger, and it was true. He was head over heels in love with the woman standing before him. He would die for her. Heck, when he was still a substitute Soul Reaper, he did die for her. Lucky for him though, she brought him back with her God-like gifts.

And now he was in more trouble for spacing out. He winced at her harsh shrill, absolutely certain that it reached the farthest corners of the Soul Society.

"**ICHIGO KUROSAKI**!" she shrieked. "How dare you! How dare you order _your _subordinates to march into the middle of one of _my _training sessions to _carry_ me out and 'escort' me here?! One, that is embarrassing and two, that was the last training session before I oversee exams, which means whoever didn't get a chance to train will most likely fail! - "

"Just post-pone and continue the training," he suggested.

He knew he had spoken the wrong words as soon as they slipped past his teeth. Her eyes sparked with fury. Ooops…

"Post-pone? That will put us even further behind schedule. You don't get that I don't want to leave Isane and Hanataro a bunch of work. And more importantly, I can walk. Pregnant doesn't mean handicap!" she yelled. Being pregnant certainly had its drawbacks, like crazy mood swings and raging hormones.

"Hime, sweetheart," he tried. _'Nice things. Butter her up'_ he thought.

"… I don't get men sometimes…" she continued her rant, now pacing back and forth.

"Hime, baby, listen to me." No luck again.

"… If I had one - "

"Orihime!" he cut her off. She stopped and stared at him. "Finally. I called for you but I heard you denied, so I was put in a place where I had to use more drastic tactics." He sighed.

Ichigo pulled her into a tight embrace, seizing her slight haze, and she quickly forgot the reason for her anger in the first place. He nuzzled her neck and whispered into her ear:

"I know you can walk, but I'd prefer knowing you're safe, so when you rejected my escort, I had no choice. I'm sorry. I wanted to talk about plans for some upcoming events with you…"

"I forgive you. I'm sorry too. For yelling at you like that. But when they came and picked me up, like I wasn't busy, I became irritated. I was in the middle of giving new instructions. And five men? Ichigo, really? But, then I saw Renji-kun and I begged for his help. He _swore_ he wouldn't disobey the 'SouTaichou', so he carried me the rest of the way here. And here I was thinking my husband wouldn't dare let another man touch me, let alone six." She feigned a pout.

He pulled back to look at her and let her know he wasn't amused.

"I don't find that funny. At all. You mock me and then don't want trouble."

She looked at him with a sly smirk.

"Funny? What an accusation… I'm very serious. The husband I know is _very _possessive."

She loved playing these types of mind games with him. Seeing him scowl and stammer was adorable.

"I am. I have to be with a wife like you. Besides, I take pride in my stuff. I can't let others spoil it. You're a minx, you know that? You spend too much time with Rangiku," he responded, his anger diffusing into a playful tone as he caught on to her game.

She laughed and slipped her arms into his haori, wrapping them around his torso. Too bad his shihakusho was in her way of feeling his chiseled chest that she loved so much. She loved his washer-board abs. Orihime looked up at him and winked. He bent his head to seal a quick kiss. She wrinkled her nose in response and shook her head.

"Hmm, I don't know. You've been a naughty boy," she teased in a child-like, silky, yet seductive tone. Ichigo looked down at her and smiled. He loved that voice; it drove him insane along with everything else about her, flaws and all. That voice that was so innocent-like, yet so dangerously seducing and threatening. He knew of the true danger that lurked behind that voice. It was one of the many things about Orihime that turned him on.

"You know, Ichi… I've been feeling deprived lately," she whispered.

One her hands steadily climbed up his chest. He bit back a moan.

"Hmm, me too. But a certain three-month old pregnant wife hasn't been in a good mood lately so -" he said. He was suddenly cut off by a fierce, passionate kiss that knocked the air out of him.

He kissed her back with the same intensity. Desire. Lust. He snaked one arm around her waist, crushing her curvy, petite, feminine form into his lean, muscular, and tall one. He tangled his other hand in her long, silky, auburn hair. That gorgeous hair, whose scent he craved. That delicious vanilla, honey, and strawberry aroma. Three things that you wouldn't normally imagine smelling good together are what she possessed. She had an intoxicating smell on her. It was heavenly. He always told her to wear her hair down, because he loved the way it would cascade down her back like an ocean. The way it flowed down her back like glossy silk. Hell, it was glossy silk in his mind. Those gorgeous, long locks – all his. His tongue traced her bottom lip as a silent plea. He swept his tongue into her cavern the second she granted him access. Thus, beginning the fight for dominance. Their tongues danced an erotic one. A feisty, exotic tango. He won the battle…

She moaned into his mouth. A little mewl. He gave a deep moan from the back of his throat. Then she did something … something she did only when she was purposely tainting and teasing him. She sucked on his tongue, before kissing him once more, and breaking apart the kiss. Ichigo frowned mentally. He was usually always in control – and she let him be too! What happened to give and take?

"Dear Kami! Oh, God – help me. This woman will be the death of me, I swear… why do you tease me so much?" Ichigo asked, trying to regulate his breathing.

Orihime was trying to regain control of her breathing as well. She still had her hands tangled in his bright orange, spiky, hair. Oh, how she loved those unruly, defiant, stubborn locks. She nuzzled the side of his neck, breathing in his masculine, spicy, sexy scent. It drove her crazy. Insane. It was like her own personal drug, getting her high. Her own drink to savor and engulf then become drunk by.

"It's fun to tease you, especially since you fall for the same old tricks. Besides, I think that was a fair preview for tonight. Plus encouragement to finish work." Orihime whispered in reply, looking up at him.

Ichigo laughed, blushing a bit. "Well, thank you," he said while his hand slid down to her bottom. He gave her buttocks a firm squeeze before slapping it ever so gently. She was sporting blush that was a dark shade of red as she ducked her face into his chest.

"Ichigo," she hissed.

He chuckled in her ear and said : "Payback, sweetheart. Only fair if I return the blush. Looks better on you anyways." He succeeded in making her blush even more, if possible.

He chuckled and sighed.

"Well, before I get to what I had to say, is there anything I should know about your 'delivery' here? I'm sure everyone knows about the SouTaichou requesting his spouse be brought to him like a queen," he told her.

Orihime looked up at him and slid her hands to his shoulders.

"Nothing I haven't told you. So, what do you want to talk about? Planning right?" she asked.

"Yeah, well, we have Daisuke and Akihiro's birthday to plan, my birthday coming up, our anniversary, and my mother's death anniversary coming up. My father wants us all there this year, since I couldn't go last year…" His face fell considerably.

"Also, your first trimester is ending so I am guessing Rukia, Tatsuki, Karin, Yuzu, and Rangiku are planning a baby shower. But that also means we have to plan a visit to the real world to go see the OBGYN," he concluded.

"Well, I am impressed. I usually do all the planning. I have been busy so I appreciate you picking up the slack. Hmph, being that your birthday is only two and a half weeks away, and the boys only a week after, we can plan something for all of you. A nice family get together or party for all my babies. Do you want to do anything big?" Orihime asked her husband.

"Umm…no. Maybe just a family function, and a little more," he said, dropping hints as he tightened his arms around her.

"Okay. That still counts as family. Just more private. A dinner then, and we can plan for the twins later," she said in a matter-of-fact tone, tapping her chin. "We should keep it simple though. Us being Taichou doesn't really help or allow for grand occasions."

Ichigo stared at her in disbelief.

"Okay, okay. That's a lie, but nothing too grand this year. Now back to us… Our anniversary is nine days. 12 years. I know it won't be as big as when we hit 10 years but I still want it special. Besides that celebration led to our sons being created." she said.

"12 years. And correction : our _monster _twin sons," Ichigo said softly.

"Just you and me. I want to go to the world of the living this year; no party. I want to visit our hill," Orihime told him lovingly.

"Okay. I'll make the arrangements." Ichigo agreed.

They continued to make plans about the upcoming week and month to follow. Orihime was about to leave, telling her husband that she should get back to Isane to complete the day's work.

"Bye, love. Let's just hope that nothing happens that could cause delay." she said knowing fully of the attacks that had happened of late. Orihime gave him a peck on the cheek and slipped out of his embrace.

* * *

Just as she was about to leave, a beaten and distressed, rather distraught-looking Soi-Fon burst into the room. Orihime could easily discern what had happened just by looking at her. She jinxed them, it would seem, with her earlier comment. Soi-Fon had been attacked.

"Soi-Fon Taichou - " Orihime began.

As she spoke, Soi-Fon fell to the ground. Ichigo rushed to her side and picked her up.

"Put her on the sofa," commanded Orihime.

She could so easily change from playful and calm to serious and observant. Full of authority. Ichigo did as the latter said and proceeded to step away. _"Sōten Kisshun, reject" _he heard her chant.

He loved watching her work; her focus and concentration put him in a trance. But now was not the time to marveling over his wife, one of his Taichou was hurt.

_'Damn, and here I was thinking the calm after the storm would last. It's been a hell of a long time since we've had any large casualties. Everything was finally starting to settle into place. Fuck! Lately, we haven't had anything to deal with. I've also received many more notices about Hollows, Adjuchas, and wandering Menos. Many more threats to us as well. I have a bad feeling something is coming. Time for an emergency captain's meeting. What the hell is going on?' _he thought…

* * *

**Loved it? Hated it? Let me know what you thought. What can be better?**

*** I am looking for a Beta so if anyone would like to be my Beta just PM me ;)**

**** Ichigo and Orihime are planning the anniversary for when they got together – being that it was special to them. Their marriage anniversary is later. They have been together since age 16. 12 years together! Ichigo's birthday is July 15 (2013- Friday), the twins' birthday – Daisuke and Akihiro – is July 28. Their anniversary is July 7. Tanabata (Sunday in the story). Put the rest together.**

***** Sorry for and spelling/ grammatical errors. I tried my best to keep them to a minimum.**

**I.K.**


	3. Treason

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 3:**

**Treason**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because I've resurrected several characters and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I got _some _inspiration from the Bleach OST named _Treachery. _I believe it's from the Bleach movie: _Diamond Dust Rebellion, _but I can be mistaken. You can listen to the song but it doesn't matter, since it's not really relevant and won't make sense until the middle or end of the chapter. The song is by Shiro Sagisu.

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo.

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

"Soi-Fon Taichou, can you please raise you head?" Orihime asked politely.

Soi-Fon did as the latter asked. Orihime slid a pillow under Soi-Fon's head.

"Your wounds have completely healed, but you need to rest. Can you tell us how you got hurt? I need to know if a weapon that could have left spiritual pressure residue on you was used, also."

Soi-Fon nodded her head in acknowledgement.

"I was on the mission assigned to my squad at the last captain's meeting to inspect the area about the mass Hollow attacks in the Rukongai that we were unaware of... We were attacked. I sent a message to one of my men, using Bakudo, to get word out to the SouTaichou that we were being attacked. I used the same type of Kido to alert my squad to retreat. Previously being separated, for the main purpose of covering more ground in quicker way during our mission, my team was struggling to regroup. I tried to send a Hell Butterfly to you, but I assume it was unsuccessful in getting here. Once the rebels were overpowered, I wanted to come see why help never came. We were in need of medical care and I was unsure if the rebels would return, so I was very hesitant to leave. My fuku-taichou and those capable were healing the injured to the best of their ability, so I left. Not too far away, I was attacked from behind… My attacker… He was in our uniform and had a katana, I was unable to detect if it was a zanpakuto. He – he was with us. My tenth seat…" she concluded softly, and looked away, ashamed.

Ichigo shared a glance with Orihime. He was a bit shocked, to tell the truth. Betrayal inside the ranks – again. He wouldn't have expected that, since everyone saw what happened to Aizen and those who followed his insanity.

"It's okay, Soi-Fon. For now, rest. Thank you. I will take a group from my squad and yours as well, Orihime, to investigate." Ichigo told Soi-Fon.

Now addressing Orihime directly, he said: "Take care of her, Orihime. When I get back, an emergency captain's meeting will take place. There, everything, in full, will be explained."

Orihime nodded and he turned to leave the room. He left, leaving the two women in silence. Orihime then turned her attention to Soi-Fon, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Relax. Does it hurt anywhere else?" she asked the injured captain…

* * *

At the captain's meeting… 

Orihime took her respectful place next to Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi and Shinji Hirako, and next to him was Shūhei Hisagi. He was going to replace the Taichou of either squad three or five, due to recent complications. As she sat between the two captains, with a bit of fear and despair seen on her features, her husband called the meeting to order. But, alas, she could not calm down. Her mind was on far more pressing issues; a bit more frightening than rebels in the outskirts. Her mind was on the events that took place while Ichigo searched for the intruders.

.

_~X~_

.

_"Soi-Fon, can you please sit up? I need to check your torso for any wounds," Orihime told her. The injured Taichou silently complied. She slowly sat up and started to remove her armor, but ceased her actions almost immediately. _

_"Orihi- " Soi-Fon's words were cut short. Her eyes were wide with fear. It was then that Orihime sensed the reiatsu being leaked out to weaken her and her wounded friend. She immediately cried, "Santen Kesshun!" _

_The intruder stopped in his tracks. He merely chuckled._

_The man advancing towards them had an incredibly immense, strong amount of reiatsu flowing through him. Not quite as much as Ichigo, by a long shot, but was revealing a large part of it. His control was incredible. _

_"His Reiryoku is strong… Who are you?" Soi-Fon asked. _

_Orihime was straining to heal Soi-Fon and keep the barrier, between them and this unknown person, up. She was trying to contact Ichigo at the same time. It took more energy than usual because she was pregnant. _

_"Oh, Soi-Fon Taichou, you should know. I am your tenth seat after all. What a shame…" he stated darkly. He pulled off his hood. Orihime gasped. He spoke again, threatening them, but Orihime couldn't hear his words._

_'He- he's dead! I saw him die! I- I declared him dead… What?' she thought. _

.

_~X~_

.

She was brought back to the present when Shinji touched her shoulder. She looked up and smiled at him gratefully. She turned towards Ichigo and smiled apologetically, also gesturing that she was focusing her full attention on the meeting. Everyone else was still settling down so, thankfully, she wasn't spacing out in front of the 13 Court Guard squad captains while her husband was talking or possibly trying to get attention.

Ichigo was losing his patience. He growled softly from his spot at the head of the table.

Soi-Fon called out to him. Orihime's eyes widened as she foresaw what he would do and shook her head warning him, yet in a pleading way, to not do it. Byakuya cleared his throat to get everyone's attention but failed to do so. Shinji placed a hand on Orihime's as she closed her eyes to prepare for the violent shock that was to course through the air, for, being pregnant, she need to stay calm. Toshiro was losing his patience as the fighting over the matter at hand was starting to escalate.

The walls began to shake.

"… Well, if you'd all shut up and listen, I'm sure Kurosaki SouTaichou will explain and you won't have to guess," a vein popped in his head as he articulated his thoughts with confidence and a hint of fear. He had experienced his captain's wrath before and did not wish to privy to that ever again.

"You're not showing him respect! This damn meeting was called to order five minutes ago, Zaraki!" yelled an infuriated Shunsui Kyoraku.

"Like I give a - " responded Zaraki Kenpachi before falling out of his chair. He grasped his throat and was seized with a round of coughs. He stopped coughing and panted.

"**Enough**!" roared a livid Ichigo, silencing all quite effectively. He stood at the head of the table.

"Ichigo," Shinji said. Ichigo did not meet his eye.

"Address him properly, Hirako-san," Byakuya said to Shinji, straining to breathe properly.

The walls began clattering. Ichigo was releasing a massive wave of reiatsu onto his Taichou, aiming primarily for Zaraki Kenpachi. But he was also focusing on not destroying everything in the process. He wanted to scare them. His spiritual pressure was raging.

"Kurosaki SouTaichou," Shinji tried again – clearing his throat.

They all felt it give a bit. Orihime was starting to tremble; she whimpered. Byakuya looked at her, eyes widening in worry – only slightly. They all knew she was pregnant again and that this was not good for her. Byakuya turned a cold, hard glare to his SouTaichou.

"Damn it, Ichigo! You're going to make your pregnant wife faint and the child will get hurt, dumbass!" Shinji yelled, relenting after Orihime gasped.

Ichigo looked at him and slowly letting up, said through clenched teeth: "Now let's try that again. Zaraki Kenpachi. Up. Now. Something has happened and we don't have time for your silly bickering."

Everyone released a breath they didn't know they were holding. They inhaled deeply. Everyone except Orihime.

"Kurosaki Taichou… Kurosaki okusan…" Byakuya called gently to her. Ichigo took his seat again and looked at his wife. She opened her eyes.

"Thank you, Shinji-kun, Kuchiki-kun. I'm quite alright." She said softly. "You can continue."

* * *

Ichigo took deep breath and began.

"As all of you know, there was a rather large Hollow attack in the Rukongai – the outer districts. Very small and remote, but its population great. The Hollows came through a Garganta that was traced back to, unfortunately as reported, Hueco Mundo. Being that they were nothing more than lower rank, weak Hollows and had very small portions of reiatsu – with the exception of the few Adjuchas and Menos with them – we can only assume that they were sent here, possibly as a distraction. By whom, we don't know. For what, we don't know that either. That's why I assigned squad two to go scout the area for anything that could help us discern why they may have been sent here. I sent Soi-Fon's squad there today and they were ambushed, and their captain was injured… Soi-Fon?"

Ichigo paused and looked to his right where Soi-Fon sat. She met his gaze and nodded. She cleared her throat and started to speak.

"I took eleven of my best men – twelve of us in all – out to the site today. We split up into four groups – three people per group. We began searching for any spiritual pressure traces. Soon, we began to regroup and before the last group could return to report their findings, we were ambushed. I don't know where they came from, but it was a small rebellion fleet. The head of this group is unknown. My lieutenant told me, before this meeting, that a small number of the rebels have been captured and they are in Central 46, waiting for their questioning. When we engaged them, we didn't expect them to be trained in battle. Most had a katana with them and the others had hand held explosives. We weren't expecting rebels at all. I tried to ask questions, but no one complied to answer. I attempted to get back to send a message, but I couldn't shake them so I used Bakudo to send a message to one of my subordinates. I ordered them to get a notice to the SouTaichou. I called my men back and the rebels started to recollect. When they gathered, I'd say there were approximately thirty men before us. I wasn't sure how they masked what little reiatsu they had, but it was done well."

She paused and looked at her comrades. She could see that their thoughts were in line with hers. She spoke their thoughts, as well as hers, aloud.

"I thought it was treason of some sort. Unless it was a self-taught method shown to prodigies by ex-shinigami. We were in dire need of medical attention. I told my lieutenant to tell all capable to assist the injured to a safer place of retreat. They began to use Kido to try and heal the wounded. I then left to figure out why help never came. About five minutes away, I was attacked… by my tenth seat. Hiroshi Suzuki. He had incredible brute force, and speed. I- I think he had something to do with what happened to my squad, if not in total control of it," Soi-Fon concluded.

Ichigo nodded his head in acknowledgement and let her words linger in the air around the captains. He let the words wrap around their minds and sink in.

"Very well, then. From what we saw when I took my men out there, what Soi-Fon speaks is truth. Byakuya, Soi-Fon, Shinji, and Toshiro… You will come assist me in the interrogation."

They nodded their heads in agreement so he continued:

"And if you come across this Hiroshi Suzuki, you are to seize and apprehend him at once. He has committed treason against the Soul Society and if you aid this criminal, you will be seen as a traitor as well. You_ will be _thrown into Central 46 and regarded for helping him. I won't accept betrayal." he finished.

"Is there anything anyone would like to add?" Kurosaki SouTaichou asked, his eyes focusing on his wife.

His thoughts went back to when he and his men had returned to find a shaken, disturbed Orihime and an equally panicked Soi-Fon. Soi-Fon was not one to get scared or panicked easily so it must have been frightening. He had asked what happened but Orihime told him that she would explain at the emergency meeting.

She took a deep breath and cleared her throat.

All eyes fell on her…

* * *

**Review please! Sorry for any grammatical and/or spelling errors. I was in a rush. I will correct them ASAP.**

**With lots of love!**

**I.K.**


	4. Behind Sealed Gates (part 1)

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 4:**

**Behind Sealed Gates… part 1  
**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I apologize for the late update guys. I was supposed to update Friday, but my computer had a virus. I was really nervous posting this chapter, so, please, don't be too harsh with the reviews. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

The name of this chapter is _"Behind Sealed Gates…" _because "Hiroshi Suzuki" infiltrated the Seireitei and got into Ichigo's office without being noticed. He wasn't recognized in Soi-Fon's squad as a threat, and is somebody completely opposite of what most would have guessed. It's also because you are going to be told the story of what he did in a "safe" area while Ichigo was gone and that was terrorizing his wife. If you guessed who he was correctly then, good job…

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo.

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

_She took a deep breath and cleared her throat._

_All eyes fell on her…_

_~X~_

At the captain's meeting…

Ichigo looked at his wife, trying to read in her eyes what she would not say out loud. She would tell what was necessary but wouldn't tell him what she was bottling up inside. He nodded his head for her to go ahead.

Orihime took a deep breath before continuing.

"Soi-Fon Taichou made it to my husband's office before collapsing. While healing her, she told us what happened as she did to all of you moments ago… Ichigo left with a few men from his squad as well as some from my own. I stayed to tend to her wounds. About halfway through the healing process, about five minutes after the men had left, I asked Soi-Fon to sit up and remove her armor to check her torso for any wounds. I needed to check to see if I had missed anything. While removing her armor, she paused. I looked at her to see why she had stopped and that's when I sensed it. I sensed an immense amount of reiatsu being leaked out. It was under a lot of control; although, it wasn't very strong. A large part was being used to try to weaken us, but I used my Shun Shun Rikka to put up a barrier between us. I was still trying to heal Soi-Fon and keep the barrier up while trying to get a message, using Bakudo or Hell Butterfly, for help out to Ichigo or whoever was nearby. I was a bit preoccupied, so it was seemingly difficult. He seemed stunned that I put up my shield, if only for a moment, because he stopped… He then started chuckling and kept advancing towards us… His Reiryoku was strong and his reiatsu, surprisingly so, was familiar, but I wasn't able put a name or face to it, until he took off his hood…That's when Soi-Fon asked who he was and he stopped walking towards us. He removed his hood and began laughing again.

He said, and I quote: 'Soi-Fon Taichou, you should know who I am. I'm your tenth seat after all… What a shame… I wonder what the SouTaichou –no- the whole Soul Society would think if they lost the only two female captains at once.'

He promised to make it quick. That there'd be no pain at all… He couldn't penetrate my shield with his katana, so he started to use Kido, but that's when Ichigo and his men came back. Before I could stop him, he left… but I got a close look at him… and this was no Hiroshi Suzuki.

I believe this person is posing as Hiroshi. I don't know how he was able to make his physical appearance differ from that of his own. Hiroshi Suzuki is Soi-Fon's tenth seat, yes, but died and was reincarnated in the world of the living. I remember who he was because he was either to be in squad two or four, the regimen in those fields being where he excelled. I was the one to overlook those exams… and I performed the autopsy that declared his way of death..."

* * *

Orihime looked pained as she opened her mouth to continue speaking. It hurt her heart that this man could be her old friend…That this man could be the man who played with her children when they were babies…That this could be the man who would babysit her newborn children so she and Ichigo could go out. This was the only man she couldn't save, the only person she hadn't been able to save in so long. This man had wanted to hurt her. She kept her face down cast as she spoke her next words.

"… He looked like Kaien. Kaien Shiba. His reiatsu was that of his when I think of it… I declared Kaien Shiba dead, that's why I find this whole ordeal to be very unusual. The day he died… I remember that day very clearly because he struggled to survive, but the damage he sustained was far too great... He was the last person I would imagine doing this." She concluded and reluctantly looked at her husband.

As Ichigo opened his mouth to speak, Kensei Muguruma yelled out.

"How in the hell do you expect us to believe that _BULLSHIT_?!"

Orihime flinched. Ichigo, along with many others, sent a pointed glare towards the man. Soi-Fon spoke up: "It's true what she speaks. I saw him but made no comment because I was unsure myself. It was right of her to speak, Kensei Muguruma."

Mayuri Kurosutchi spoke next.

"How are we to believe this human? How can we trust her 'gifts'?" he spoke with a malice laced voice in faux innocence.

"This woman brings shame to us Shinigami. Why we let one human stay, let alone two, is far beyond my comprehension. Well, woman, what have you to say? Your gifts have been failing as of late. How embarrassing. Kaien was fine and you come along, then poof. No more Kaien. Where is dear Unohana when you need her…" he trailed off.

This caused a stir among the captains. Toshiro looked at Mayuri with hatred. How dare he talk to his friend like that? It wasn't her fault that Kaien died… Shinji looked at Orihime and sighed. She always blamed herself for that death. She had tears in the corners of her eyes… Orihime wiped them away and opened her mouth to speak but Ichigo beat her to the chase…

"Mayuri Kurosutchi. Insult my wife again. I promise you that it would be a mistake you would regret for a very long time… We know what happened so I advise you to stop."

Everyone ceased their noise and looked at Ichigo whom they believed would act rash but acted so calmly…

He began to speak again.

Orders this time…

* * *

**Short update this chapter. Hope it was worth it. **

**READ AND REVIEW!**

**I.K. out! :p**


	5. Behind Sealed Gates (part 2)

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 5:**

**Behind Sealed Gates… part 2  
**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I apologize for the late update guys. What happened in the last chapter will be explained as we go further into the story. I was nervous posting this chapter, so, please, don't be too harsh with the reviews. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

The name of this chapter is _"Behind Sealed Gates…" _because "Hiroshi Suzuki" infiltrated the Seireitei and got into Ichigo's office without being noticed. He wasn't recognized in Soi-Fon's squad as a threat, and is somebody completely opposite of what most would have guessed. It's also because you are going to be told the story of what he did in a "safe" area while Ichigo was gone and that was terrorizing his wife. If you guessed who he was correctly then, good job…

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo.

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

_"Mayuri Kurosutchi. Insult my wife again. I promise you that it would be a mistake you would regret for a very long time… We know what happened so I advise you to stop."_

_Everyone ceased their noise and looked at Ichigo whom they believed would act rash but acted so calmly…_

_He began to speak again. Orders this time…_

_~X~_

At the captain's meeting…

"Kurosutchi, I want you to find out if it is indeed possible to manipulate one's appearance using anything as basic as that of humans to anything as complex as what has been seen or documented here in the four realms. Heed my warning carefully, Mayuri," Ichigo said threatening, menacingly leaning forward.

"You are _not_ to use _any_methods that would put those around you in danger. No tests subjects. No testing without consent. No tricking anyone for 'help' as you call it. And do not mix my words as to _try_ and weasel out of what I have just said or there will be severe punishment to pay as a consequence. Have I made myself clear?" he asked.

_'Serves him right. Stupid fool.' _thought an irritated Toshiro Hitsugaya agreeing with his SouTaichou.

They all remembered what happened the last time Mayuri got crazy with his research – the object of his study was a very pregnant Orihime Kurosaki, carrying the twins, Daisuke and Akihiro. Ichigo Kurosaki was less than pleased. He was beyond angry and Mayuri Kurosutchi was scared to say the least – which was very uncharacteristic of him.

Mayuri nodded in reluctance, obviously remembering the same as most.

"Of course, SouTaichou, I wouldn't think of it," he replied.

Two seats down from him, Shunsui Kyoraku let out a reminiscent snicker.

"Okay, then. As head of the Research Dept. I expect you'll find answers in good time. Shinji Hirako, please contact Kisuke Urahara and tell him that his assistance in this research will be greatly appreciated. Tell him we'll be in contact soon so _I _can properly inform him of the matters at hand."

Shinji gave a 'humph' in response before saying, "So formal, SouTaichou."

Ichigo rolled his eyes and turned his attention to Soi-Fon.

"Soi-Fon, for now, please have your men rest so they can properly recover, as well as yourself. I will inform you of your next deployment on a mission. As for the rest of you, within the next couple of days a formal captain's meeting will be conducted. You'll be notified by Hell Butterfly. You are all to bring your fuku-taichou. Seeing as they need to be informed, they must be present when the next meeting is held. For now, _do not _speak about what has been said here. Don't breathe a word of what you've heard to anyone. We mustn't frighten anyone without knowing exactly what is going on. When we meet again, hopefully, we'll have more details. Until then, reassure everyone that everything is under control and those hurt are or will be fine. Just make sure to look after one another. You're all dismissed until the next gathering in the Meeting Hall. (Captains' Hall?) Kuchiki-Taichou, Hitsygaya-Taichou, and Soi-Fon, please stay for a moment." he finished.

He looked over at his wife.

"Orihime, stay a minute please."

The four nodded their head in acknowledgment.

_~X~_

After making sure that all the others were gone, Ichigo addressed them.

"I have something to ask each of you. Kuchiki-san, Hitsugaya-san, I would like for each of you to check on Mayuri's studies, whenever possible, of course on your schedule. He is a very unsettling man, as you both know, and I don't have the leisure of time to breathe on his shoulder to keep him in check. I ask the two of you this out of trust and respect for you."

"Consider it done," Byakuya said before standing to leave. He gave a small bow and shunpo'ed away.

"Thank you," Ichigo said, nodding his good-bye.

"I will help in any way I can, SouTaichou. If you'll excuse me now, I have something to attend to." Toshiro said, gave a bow, and flashed away.

Ichigo, Orihime, and Soi-Fon gathered at the head of the table.

"Orihime, Soi-Fon. Being that both of your squads are intimately involved in this problem – squad two directly with the attack and squad four in the healing aspect of it – then I must ask of you to tell your squads not to talk about the incident. Not until after the meeting at least. Talk is dangerous at this point since we are unsure of who to trust now. Anyway, for now, that is all. Get some rest, Soi-Fon. The interrogation will be postponed until Monday. Thank you for your hard work and make sure my wife's squad takes good care of yours or else _someone _might get in trouble for incompetence when dealing with her responsibilities," he concluded with a light joke as he snaked as arm around Orihime's waist.

Ichigo sent his wife a wink. She lightly pouted and crossed her arms, turning her head away from her husband.

Soi-Fon softly chuckled at the exchange between the young couple. An amazing duo they were.

"No, thank you, SouTaichou. I'll make sure to relay the message to my team. Have a good evening," she said before bowing and flashing away…

_~X~_

Now that the two were alone, Orihime approached Ichigo.

"Are you mad at me, Ichi?" Orihime asked tentatively.

"No, Hime, not mad at you." He paused before continuing and looked into the-love-of-his-life's eyes. Ichigo was infuriated that another man had threatened his princess. First Aizen and the creeps in Hueco Mundo, and now a man who isn't who everyone thinks he is. "I am just mad that another man threatened you and that we are fighting blind."

"Oh," Orihime quietly responded.

_'Possessive and protective – check and double check.' _She thought with a hint of amusement and smiled fondly up at her favorite strawberry.

"This means I'll have a bunch of paperwork to do," Ichigo deadpanned. He sighed. Orihime sweat-dropped at this comment.

She sighed: "We're under an unknown threat and you're worried about paper work? I'm wondering if Yama-jii was drunk when he declared you his successor."

"Hey now! You supported my being SouTaichou. You were quite supportive in fact, but I might be mistaken," he said in a suggestive and teasing manner with a hint of hope laced underneath.

"Well, let me refresh your memory after the boys are put to bed," she giggled.

She placed a chaste kiss on his lips and took his hand, leading him the way home...

* * *

**Until next time...**

**I.K.**


	6. Breaking in Unnoticed! Behind the mask

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 6:**

**Breaking in Unnoticed! Behind the mask…**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I appreciate reviews very much. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

So I received a PM that was not too friendly – at all. Apparently I am screwing up the Bleach story and my story is awful. I am really considering just stopping the story if it's that bad that I have to get a message like that. I'm the author so… It's not real, hence the title FAN FICTION! So, please, let's keep that to a minimum… Anyway, this chapter is relatively short and to those who can't wait to meet Daisuke and Akihiro - well, they are on the way!

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo.

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

A hooded figure watched as a pair of orangettes walked down the sidewalk. Arm-in-arm. They were chatting merrily away. The taller of the two, a male with bright and spiky hair, bent down and whispered into the female's ear. She had a more toned down orange for her hair color. Like the sunset, almost. Auburn. It flowed endlessly, in perfect waves, cascading down her narrow back.

The woman laughed at whatever the man had said. Her tinkering laughter filled the silence in the air, traveling towards where the cloaked figure stood, filling his ears, followed by a husky chuckle.

"Such beauty corrupted by a vile man," the man whispered to himself.

He turned from the scene before him when the couple shared a kiss. He used shunpo to get to his destination. Jumping from building to building, rooftop to rooftop, before finally arriving at an abandoned shop. It was a little store left to wither away, and shrivel away into dust and ash. It was left there to be forgotten about, just as he.

He walked into the shop, sliding the door shut behind him after making sure he wasn't followed.

He walked further into the shop before kneeling and standing again.

"I have returned. Just as expected, the meeting held was out of emergency, panic, and fear. They reek of fear. Never the less, they are rapidly catching on. Soon they'll be aware of the fact that Hiroshi Suzuki is deceased and was reincarnated in the world of the living, currently in the care of Karin Kurosaki. As her adopted child, now Hiroshi Kurosaki. She had a miscarriage. The baby that was lost was luck, as she is infertile. Her and her fiancé, the captain of squad ten, decided it best to adopt for the time being. So if they don't know already, they will soon," said the man.

"The rebellion fleet was defeated and the martyrs of our resolve are to be interrogated soon; they are most likely to end up in Central 46. Everything seems to be falling into place, aside from minor flaws and setbacks. The woman -" he sighed heavily, almost as if he was heartbroken and it pained him to go on.

He continued to speak, slowly, thinking before something wrong slipped off his tongue and past his teeth.

"The woman cannot be killed. Not by me. She is carrying another child… We – we cannot allow them to be able to use her as a martyr. Their hurt – their pain and sorrow _will_ fuel them… I'm sorry, Master. Lord - ," he was cut off.

A man hidden in the shadows of the wasted shack spoke:

"Enough. You have done your job, Kaien. I know your lovely wife would be proud. From my personal intellect, other than you, of course, I now know that she has found another spouse. So much unlike yourself, though. She is trying to find solace. She is looking, searching desperately, for a male role to help raise the children. That's why you refuse to kill Orihime Kurosaki… She reminds you of your dear Miyako. _But you_ _will kill her. _Her power is very great and we can't give the enemy this advantage over us." He concluded his speech and waited for any objections.

Kaien tightened his grip on his zanpakuto but remained silent. His life was saved by both this man and Orihime Kurosaki. She saved him unknowingly, while this man rescued him from certain Hell unknown. He is forever in their debt…

The man opposite Kaien remained in the dark. He smiled slyly. He would always find a way to regain control when it slipped from his grasp. He would get his revenge. And, like in his ancestry, bring the Kurosaki clan down and wreak havoc on the Soul Society. He would be resurrected as a God … all in due time.

"You're dismissed, Kaien… and get rid of the pest on your way out," said the man.

_~X~_

She stayed in the shadows to remain unnoticed. She now knew that this "Kaien" figure was going to try and assassinate the SouTaichou's wife… but seemed reluctant to do so. She now understood a bit more of the enemy's plan against the Soul Society. The other man… it was from a long time ago, but he sounded familiar. He sounded like an old friend…

_~X~_

Soi-Fon moved stealthily through the shadows…

_"…and get rid of the pest on your way out."_

She froze in her tracks when she heard those words. She knew she had to get out of there. Her left foot slipped a little along the banner of the roof, causing a little bit of noise. She held her breath…

.

.

.

A sword was placed on her left shoulder.

As soon as the metal touched her body, her breath caught in her throat.

.

.

.

"Leave here. Now. Before I have to kill you," the voice lowered, whispering in her ear now.

"Warn them," the voice said. "Go."

She left immediately. She would tell Kurosaki SouTaichou and Orihime before they could silence her to stop Soi-Fon from relaying what she now knew, or before they could incite ham to Orihime. Orihime was her friend. They'd built a trust over the years. She was now positive that she would give her life for this human. She had personally trained Orihime along with Yoruichi and Hachi-san. She watched Orihime blossom – as a Taichou, wife, mother, and friend.

She didn't know what this new enemy was planning, but, right now, Orihime's life was at stake.

_"…Warn them. Warn them…"_

The words rang clearly in her ears as she raced to Ichigo and Orihime's house…

_~X~_

* * *

**Until next time beautiful people of the world! And yes, this "Kaien" man was like a total stalker in the beginning! I did that on purpose… so review! Reviews are my fuel!**

**Love ya!**

**I.K. out!**


	7. Three is a party!

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 7:**

**Three is a party: New threats, Old faces, and Warnings…**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I appreciate reviews very much. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

*_ Italicized_ _text_: Orihime's Flashbacks. (Or thoughts.)

* Regular text: What is happening in the story currently.

FOUR WORDS: DAISUKE AND AKIHIRO TIME! (Not much but certainly not the end of this duo… just an introduction to the madness that will come.)

And I must apologize for the depth of detail about their home but it is kind of necessary. I got really creative with it… and used my house as inspiration.

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo.

Enjoy! :D

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

The Kurosaki couple walked down the sidewalk towards their home, not too far from squad one's barracks. Orihime pushed the gate open to her home and walked up the path leading to the porch, Ichigo following close behind her.

They lived in a very nice house. They had many things others didn't, mostly for the sake of the twins and their children in the future. Their lovely abode was built by none other than Ichigo, Chad (Sado), Renji, Shinji, Uryuu, and many of their close friends as a gift to Orihime on her twenty-second birthday. Ichigo and Orihime had been living in a decent sized flat, courtesy of Byakuya Kuchiki, but Ichigo could tell that she wanted a home for them to call their own. Besides, their romps could be called – _at times_ – considerably loud…

The Kurosaki household had two-stories. It had a large porch, front yard with a garden, and a backyard with a pool. The backyard had a pool, hot tub, kid's area (swing set and clubhouse included), and enough room for family events. The Kurosaki home had an attic and basement and five bedrooms: the master bedroom, two guest rooms, and two for their children. Daisuke and Akihiro shared a room and a nursery had been recently set up for the baby.

The house had a large kitchen with state-of-the-art, steel appliances. It had marble countertops, and mahogany, furnished wood cupboards/pantries. A good sized cooking island in the middle of the room completed the look. They had two large family rooms, a dining room, closets to no end, and their own private offices. It was a large and spacious home, but it was comfortable and homey.

.

_~X~_

.

Orihime stopped at the front door and turned to Ichigo. She had one hand on the door knob and the other held the key.

"I don't want to embarrass you, again, by making _another _bet on if Daisuke and Akihiro drove the babysitter insane, _but_, I'd like to hear your guess," she said.

"My guess? I don't need to guess. I already know the answer. Besides, for some odd reason, they behave with Esumi-san," Ichigo replied. "They were the well-behaved children they _should _be. Saying that they were angels would stretch it a bit."

"So, you _think_ they behaved. Well, I _don't_. No guesses needed. Just a mother's intuition." Orihime replied confidently.

"They behaved yesterday. What makes you think that it'll be different today? _Now_ I want to bet. They're only three! How much trouble can they possible get in – no, I take that back. They can get into _a lot_ of trouble, but lately they've been good," Ichigo said to his wife, concluding his rant in a scowl.

"Lately meaning yesterday. And they are _almost_ three," Orihime shot his previous statement down.

Ichigo's scowl deepened.

Orihime giggled a bit. They both loved to compete at times with one another and when the opportunity rose for them to be able to school each other, they couldn't pass it up.

"Yesterday, they were with Toshiro-kun. That's why Daisuke and Akihiro behaved. But if you want to bet, that's all fine and dandy too," chirped Orihime. "Same as Wednesday's bet? You get to choose since I won the last. It would only be fair."

Ichigo blushed as he remembered the terms of their last "deal".

"Ichigo?"

Ichigo cleared his throat before speaking and bent down to whisper in his wife's ear: "You know what I want. We haven't had a good night in a while, don't you think? Call it decent or great, but amazing – no. A testament to how long ago spectacular was would be you belly that now holds my third child. But that's just my opinion… don't get me wrong, it's always great, _but_…"

Orihime blushed at the comment.

"Why can't we bet like normal people?" she sighed. "Well, I guess you'll be tortured twice this week."

"Maybe." Ichigo replied, chuckling. "We're not normal, now are we? Anyway… Seal the deal, love."

She stood on her tip-toes and gave her husband a kiss on the lips. She then turned around and opened the door…

.

~X~

.

"Aah, you're home," Esumi Tsukino said as the couple walked through the door. She was waiting in the foyer for the pair for the past hour, alternating between leaning against the wall and pacing the area.

"I gave Daisuke and Akihiro their food. They have on fresh pull-ups and are in the kitchen. I really, really must be going now. You can drop off the money whenever… or never. Consider this a job done for my neighbors. My friends! No charge required! Bye now!" Esumi said and ran out the door.

Ichigo looked at his wife, who looked incredibly smug by the way. The babysitter was waiting for them at the door and didn't even stay long enough to get her money. Refused even. She didn't say how the boys were either.

"She lives ten minutes away. I wouldn't call that a close neighbor. Our closest neighbor is five minutes down the road…" Ichigo deadpanned.

Orihime simply put her keys and purse on the table by the door after she removed her sandals. She fixed all the shoes by the door, put her keys in the key basket, and hung up her haori and purse in the closet in the main hall. Then, she responded to Ichigo.

"I. Win."

She turned and left her husband in the hallway, who had resorted to sputtering indignantly, before calling out: "Hey! Weren't you feeling deprived?!"

All he got for a response was Orihime's melodious laughter. He sweat dropped and trudged into his home after removing his own haori and sandals. As he walked down the hall to join her in the kitchen, he let out a string of curses under his breath.

He turned into his kitchen only to be agitated even further. Daisuke, his older son, by ten minutes to his twin, flung his mashed potatoes at his face. Then, Akihiro threw his Sippy cup at Ichigo's head.

Daisuke and Akihiro looked at each other before dying of laughter.

"Good one, Kiro!" Daisuke said.

"Yay! Yay! Look at daddy! Dai! Dai! Look," Akihiro screamed from the highchair next to Daisuke's.

"No, Kiro. Owd man!" Daisuke said before laughing again.

Akihiro laughed as well. Daisuke had recently gotten into calling Ichigo "old man" but pronounced the old part as "owd".

.

_~X~_

.

Daisuke was definitely the brains of their plots. He was the master mind of the two. Daisuke wasn't even three yet but decided he would give his parents, mainly his father, a taste of the trouble-making threes. He had his terrible twos moments but they weren't as prominent as Akihiro's.

Daisuke loved attention when he got it yet he wouldn't seek it out. In that sense, and lots of other ways as well, he was kind of like his father. With spiky, orange hair, a sharp and defined nose, and an easily identifiable scowl, Daisuke was the spitting image of Ichigo. He was like his miniature. The only difference was his eyes, laugh, and smile. He had his mother's big doe, grey eyes. He also was gifted with her bright smile. He laughed a lot like her too – which he loved to do.

Akihiro was the younger of the two by ten minutes. He was extremely smart, just like his brother, but his personality wasn't like that of Daisuke's. It was like they were polar opposites but the perfect, inseparable, duo.

Akihiro, being the "baby", was still going through the terrible twos department. Although he was starting to show signs of the trouble-making threes, he was, without a doubt, going to be stuck in the terrible twos area for a long, long time.

Akihiro was loud, crazy, open, and in-your-face. He loved attention and often, much to Ichigo's dismay, whined to get it. He did whine more, cry more, and throw more tantrums than Daisuke. The only difference was that his tantrums were nothing compared to Daisuke's once-in-a-blue-moon, call-the-cops-my-child-is-being-murdered tantrums. Akihiro was also a momma's boy, which Ichigo didn't like either.

Akihiro was very sneaky and, just like his brother, sly. He was very persistent, a feat. he got from both parents. He was the go-lucky child, always smiling and laughing, like his mom. Daisuke liked to smile, but loved to scowl, like his father, more.

Akihiro looked equally like both parents. Ichigo and Orihime's family and friends could never depict who Akihiro looked more like – Orihime or Ichigo. He had Ichigo's amber eyes but Orihime's doe shape to them. He had Ichigo's sharp nose just like his twin. They both had Orihime's lips (not as plump though) and ears. Both twins were tall, big for their age, and lanky. Akihiro had somewhat more of Orihime's personality, while Daisuke had a bit more of Ichigo's to add to his own.

The only major difference between the two young boys was their hair color. Akihiro had spiky hair with a bit of a curly edge to it while Daisuke's was like Ichigo's. Daisuke's hair color was bright orange but Akihiro's was more of a sandy brown. A bit more golden. Ichigo concluded that it was very similar to Yuzu's, but had more of an orange tint. He said it must have been from his mother. Curly and sandy brown. A trait from Masaki Kurosaki.

Both boys were very strong and it may not have been in muscle, but it was more in dedication and persistence in whatever they did. From a number of things ranging from learning to crawl, stand, walk, and speak to eating their own food with utensils. It was something they learned from mom and dad… Both parents couldn't have been more proud.

.

_~X~_

.

Orihime restrained her laughter as she watched her children torment her husband. Daisuke and Akihiro were laughing so hard that tears began to fall from their visages.

"Okay, okay. Let's go get you two ready for the bed. We'll have a bath and watch some cartoons before bedtime. Besides, daddy's gonna blow." She told her sons.

Ichigo was at the sink washing his face. He dried his face and turned off the running water. He walked to the fridge and got an ice pack from the freezer for the lump he was sure he had.

"Wait until you two go to sleep. I'll let the big, bad Hollows get you."

Akihiro and Daisuke, now on the floor, each holding one of their mother's hands, looked at each other before screaming out: "No! No, daddy, no! No wollows!"

Akihiro threw himself on the floor and started to scream. He sat on his butt, kicking his feet, and wailed to Kami. Orihime sent Ichigo an exasperated look before bending down to pick up her crying baby.

Daisuke began to whimper. He went to Ichigo and pulled on his pant leg. When Ichigo looked down, Daisuke shook his head in the negative, pleading with his father to keep them away.

Both Daisuke and Akihiro knew to a certain extent about Hollows. They both had spirit energy and were spiritually aware beings. When they went to The World of The Living, the twins frequently saw Wholes and many people, who didn't know about their life in the Soul Society, thought that the twins had imaginary friends.

They knew that Hollows were bad monsters and were once good people who needed to rest. And that's all Ichigo and Orihime thought they should know at this age.

Ichigo and Orihime had told them a story once about Hollows and told their children that if they didn't behave the Hollows would come for them. But, being that it was Halloween, – or "All Hollows-Eve" as Isshin calls – the adults around them got involved and a bit carried away. Not to mention crafty in how they told the story. Orihime and Ichigo were put in a position where they had to explain what the Hollows were and promised no harm would come to their kids. (Ichigo had fun teaching his father and Renji a lesson that night.)

"No Hollows! No tears! Come on, don't cry! I'll keep them away," Ichigo told them in an attempt to quiet them down a bit. He didn't want to upset his babies, but also didn't want them sleeping with him and his wife for months again.

"Let's go, Daisuke." Orihime held her hand out to her son. "I'll give you two a bath and Daddy will get rid of those nasty Hollows. Right, Daddy?" Orihime sent wink to Ichigo.

Ichigo mouthed 'sorry' to her as she walked out of the kitchen with Akihiro snuggled in the crook of neck and Daisuke clinging to her arm.

.

_~X~_

.

Later that night…

Orihime stood in the middle of the twins' room. Tears ran down her cheeks. She looked at her sons and sighed heavily. Flashes of what happened almost two years ago popped into her mind…

.

_~X~_

.

_"Orihime! Run! Go, Orihime, run!" he yelled out to her. She had Daisuke and Akihiro in her arms, clutching them tightly in her grasp._

_"Orihime-!" He was cut off as another Cero was shot out of yet another Menos Grande's mouth. And another…_

_And another…_

_And another._

_When the smoke cleared, she didn't see her friend._

_"Ka- Kaien? Kaien-kun?!" she screamed. Orihime saw his beaten, mutilated body slowly get up…_

.

_Miyako and Kaien Shiba had gone on a trip to the real world with the Kurosaki family for the annual Tanabata Festival. They claimed it to be good for them to have a change of scenery. And Daisuke and Akihiro would get to see their family. _

_A couple of days before the festival however, they were ambushed while walking in the park. Ichigo, Isshin, Yuzu, and Karin had stayed at the Kurosaki clinic from some quality time together…and to mourn the death anniversary of Masaki Kurosaki a bit early because Ichigo would not be there that year._

_Miyako was pregnant with triplets, about six months into the pregnancy. Kaien and his lovely wife were ecstatic. They had begun to help the Kurosakis more when it came to Daisuke and Akihiro for practice. _

_All in all, the group was overflowing with reiatsu…_

_A Garganta had opened behind them and Miyako was the first knocked out cold, taken by surprise. Kaien popped his Soul Candy into his mouth and sprang into action. More and more Hollows appeared, each stronger than the previous, until a wave of Menos showed up…_

.

_~X~_

.

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts.

"You coming to bed anytime soon?" a deep, husky voice asked.

She wiped her face and turned towards him. She smiled brightly.

"Yes. I am coming now." She held out her hand to him. "They're asleep. Let's go…"

He took her hand and led her down the hallway to their room. With the door shut behind them, Ichigo turned his wife around. He had seen her wipe her face and assumed that she must have been crying.

"What's wrong? If you're upset about what I said to the boys, then I'm sorry. I didn't know that they would react like that… But I take it from the look on your face that it's not at all relevant to what happened downstairs…" he said.

.

_Th__ey were surrounded. Orihime stood in front of Miyako, Daisuke, and Akihiro. Her shield was in front of them. She stepped out from behind it to help Kaien after ordering Baigon, Hinagiko, and Lily__to encase the three completely. _

_A Cero was fired at her shield – straight towards where the most reiatsu, as of now, was flowing._

_"Miyako!" Kaien screamed…_

.

"Orihime?" Ichigo called out to his wife.

"Yes? Oh – I'm – I'm okay. Honestly Ichi, that was nothing. I just… I just don't understand why everyone was so quick to judge. I - …" she trailed off.

She looked down and let the tears fall freely. It was her fault. Her fault. It was all her fault that Kaien died. She was the reason he and Miyako wouldn't grow old together. She was the reason he didn't get to meet his children - Tomoko, Azumi, and Ryo. He wouldn't see his best friends, Kensei and Rukia, ever again… It should have been her to die, **_not_** Kaien Shiba.

"Shhh. Hime, it's alright. It wasn't your fault," Ichigo whispered in her ear, pulling his sobbing wife into his arms. He knew the minute she said Kaien's name at the meeting that her train of thought would soon reach this point. He saw it in her eyes when she was speaking about him…

.

_"Kaien-kun! Look out!" Orihime screamed. Her shield sustained the attack being made but Kaien still went towards where his wife lay unconscious._

_He didn't see the Cero. He didn't care. He just cared about getting to his family._

_They were greatly outnumbered. Miyako was starting to come around and none of the shinigami – including the captain level shinigami and vizards -stationed in Karakura Town came to their aid. To top it off, the number of enemies they were facing wasn't decreasing._

_"Orihime, when Miyako gets up, I want you to take her and your sons and run. Far away. The others should be arriving any minute now. Go get ready," Kaien told her quickly. _

_Orihime looked at her sons who were screaming, and probably attracting more Hollows with their fluctuating reiatsu._

.

Orihime looked up at her husband. She slid her hands up to his shoulders. Her arms wrapped around his neck. Her eyes were glistening with tears.

Ichigo wrapped his arms around Orihime and brought her body close to his.

She caressed his face tenderly before speaking.

"I love you. I love you, so much, Ichigo. Promise me… promise you won't leave when I need you the most," she whispered.

"I won't ever leave you. Whether I'm needed or not. Whether I am wanted or not... I'll always be here… I love you, Orihime, don't forget that," Ichigo replied.

He knew exactly what she meant. Kaien died, leaving behind his wife, two girls, and a boy. They'll need him, but he won't be there.

Ichigo knew Kaien fought for his life, but, dammit all to hell! He could have fought harder. Ichigo wouldn't leave his family with the responsibilities he had to attend to. It was wrong, cold, and cruel to think that way but Ichigo couldn't help it. He couldn't resist the little anger he had for this man for abandoning his family. He couldn't fathom doing that to his family.

_~X~_

Ichigo leaned into his wife's soft caress. He let out a content sigh before closing the gap between them completely.

He kissed her softly on the lips. She replied in kind. After a couple of minutes, they broke away when they heard a frantic pounding on the door.

Ichigo rested his head on Orihime's.

"I'll get it. Besides, Zangetsu is still down stairs." he said.

"Okay. Hurry back to bed before I get sleepy," she replied.

"I thought you won? Didn't that mean no-?" he was cut off by her pushing him towards the door.

"Just go open the door before I change my mind!" Orihime said. She slapped him lightly on the arm and giggled.

He chuckled and left as she turned away from him…

.

Orihime sat on the edge of their bed and let her thoughts wonder off…

…to a night she wouldn't ever forget.

.

_Miyako soon got up and Orihime rushed to her side. She picked up the twins and told Miyako the plan._

_"Orihime! Run! Go, Orihime, run!" he yelled out to her. She had Daisuke and Akihiro in her arms, clutching them tightly in her grasp._

_"Orihime-!" He was cut off as another Cero was shot out of yet another Menos Grande's mouth. And another…_

_And another…_

_And another._

_When the smoke cleared, she didn't see her friend._

_"Ka- Kaien? Kaien-kun?!" she screamed. Orihime saw his beaten, mutilated body slowly get up…_

_She was close to giving Miyako her children and telling her to run while she went and helped Kaien. But, she heard her name being called out by a different voice before she could react. Orihime turned her head and saw Isshin Kurosaki running towards her. She met him half way with Miyako close behind her._

_"Take the kids and Miyako away from here. I have to go back and help Kaien," she explained in a rush. She handed off the twins and ran off when Isshin nodded his 'okay'. _

_She ran back to the clearing to find Kaien and many more Soul Reapers engaged in combat._

**_"Getsuga Tenshou!" _**_She heard off in the distance. Looks like her husband joined the brawl as well. _

_She found the person she was looking for… only, she found him in a way she didn't want to. She looked to her left just as a Hollow's arm punched and went straight through Kaien's chest. Those images would never leave her. The Hollow threw the corpse onto the ground and began pounding his body. She saw a flash of silver attack the Hollow and watched as it disintegrated. _

_"No!" she screamed. She ran to where the fallen warrior lay as fast as she could. She called for her healing powers the second she was in range._

_She didn't know when the fighting stopped. She didn't know if they had won but she was fairly certain they did. (It was obvious.) She didn't care that her husband knelt down next to her and was calling her… She just had to save this man. She had to. He had a family to get back to. A life to live. But, alas, as her shield cracked and burst into a million, tiny orange fragments around her, she knew he wouldn't survive. _

_He struggled. He held onto her hand tightly and spoke to her, as if he was trying to keep her calm. As if the roles were reversed, not vice- versa._

_"Thank you, but as long as she's fine… As long as they're fine, I'm happy to go." He said. And with that he took his last breath and closed his eyes…_

_"Kaien! Kaien – no!" Miyako yelled as she rushed over as quickly as her pregnancy would allow._

_They all grieved, but she grieved the worst…_

_He was the one she couldn't save… _

_As much as she tried, Orihime couldn't heal him, and she blamed herself for his death…_

.

Orihime always blamed herself for breaking up that family, for ending a friendship short, and for being too weak to save him.

.

_~X~_

.

Ichigo opened the door to Soi-Fon. He immediately joked around and accused her of not resting like he ordered. But she pushed that aside and demanded to know where Orihime was.

He looked into her eyes and saw fear and panic. Ichigo then became suspicious, nervous, and scared. He bolted back down the hall and up the stairs. Soi-Fon slammed the door shut and closed her eyes to see if she could sense any unfamiliar spiritual pressure around the house. Once all clear, she ran up the stairs after Ichigo.

Ichigo burst into his and Orihime's room to see her sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Hime?" he asked, slightly out of breath. "You – you okay?"

"Yes. Why wouldn't I be?" she asked curious as to why he would return in such a state.

As he opened his mouth to answer, Soi-Fon stepped out from behind him and replied:

"Because, Orihime, this 'Kaien' man was ordered to kill you and I came to warn you…"

.

.

_~X~_

.

.

* * *

**A/N: Explanations: **

*** ****"Good one, Kiro!" Daisuke said. (Daisuke said Akihiro as "Kiro" because he can't pronounce Akihiro yet.)**

**** "Yay! Yay! Look at daddy! Dai! Dai! Look," Akihiro screamed from the highchair next to Daisuke's. (A/N: He calls Daisuke "Dai" because he can't say Daisuke. It's pronounced like Daisuke without the –suke at the end. Not die.)**

***** I know someone out there is thinking, "Aren't they three? How do they understand so much? How do they know about all that – blah, blah, and blah." I know, I know. They're smart kids and long story short; let's just say Renji and Isshin did something that scared these youngsters for a looooong time. I will probably do a Halloween story on it so you find out how Daisuke and Akihiro know about Hollows. Just, please, for now, use your imagination or something…**

****** Baigon, Hinagiko, and Lily (They're Orihime's shielding powers. They are the spirits that make up her Santen Kesshun; they are part of her Shun Shun Rikka.)**

******* "Hime?" he asked, slightly out of breath. "You – you okay?" ****(The house is huge remember.)**

**.**

**Cliff hanger...**

**So, I know there are a lot of mistakes in this – spelling/grammar wise. I was in a rush so… Sorry :/ I will fix them ASAP.**

**The title of this relates to Kaien being the old face, the threat to kill Hime, and the warning she receives at the end.**

**Until next time,**

**I.K.**


	8. Message Recieved and Protection Insured

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 8:**

**Message Received and Protection Insured… **

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I appreciate reviews very much. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

Believe it or not, chapters 2 – 7 happen over the course of one day. They were just a continual of one another. The meeting _was_ an emergency meeting and was called late in the evening. Everything afterwards, leading up to Soi-Fon's warning, is early night. By the end of chapter seven, it is night time. The date for those chapters is 6/28/13 (June 28)…

SHORT UPDATE. Sorry… Spring break will allow for longer chapters.

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo. And Shiro Sagisu owns the Bleach OSTs that fueled my imagination and gave me partial inspiration for the chapter. Listen to **"Here To Stay"** or **"Will of the Heart"** or **"Never Meant To Belong"**. If you want to listen to them while reading, I would recommend playing it after the italicized paragraph. I like **"Here To Stay"** when Orihime wakes up and **"Never Meant To Belong"** in the beginning part.

Enjoy!

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

Ichigo's POV:

Her words rang clear in my mind.

They repeated over and over, like a broken record.

"_I saw a cloaked figure following you and decided to follow him. I had forgotten something in your office from when I was healed, so I went back to get it… I saw you and Orihime leaving, but a man was following you. He looked suspicious so, when he wasn't following you, and went on his own path, I made the quick decision to follow as well. He stopped at an old, abandoned shop. He talked to a hidden man who gave him orders to kill Orihime [Kurosaki]. I was about to leave but my clothing caught on a loose nail or something and caused my foot to slip along the banner that lined the roof. Before I could even react to this, the man whom I was following, or possibly another, had his katana at my throat… telling me to warn you. He seemed very reluctant to let me go, but at the same time loathed the fact that orders were given to kill Orihime…"_

.

.

.

We got the warning… now all that was left to do was make sure we took action about the threat. We had to have a plan, do something with the given information.

But, what?

Protect her at all costs. That's what.

I had to protect her. She'd given my life purpose again. _She was my life._

If it came down to it, I wouldn't hesitate to give my life for hers. I think if I had to, I would ruthlessly kill someone without as much as a backwards glance. I wouldn't think about it. I have my resolve now… I would protect her with everything I had. Her… and my unborn child.

She wouldn't ever be alone if I had anything to do with it. If I could, I would be with her every second of the day…

.

_~X~_

.

I turned my head and looked at the clock on the nightstand next to the bed.

I wasn't getting sleep thinking about someone wanting to kill my most precious person.

2:37 a.m.

I sighed and gently disentangled myself from my beautiful wife then sat up. The thin blanket that was covering my bare chest pooled around my waist, and the cool night air from the open window sent a shiver down my spine. I looked down at the goddess that occupied space next to me and let out another drawn out sigh. The amazing creature next to me was perfect in so many ways I couldn't count. She gave me a family again and was there to pull me through rough times. I wasn't worthy of her love… yet she chose_ me_. What I wouldn't give for this woman? I don't know. She was my everything. It hurt to think about not being able to protect her.

She stirred a little in her sleep and I reached over and moved some hair out of her face. Orihime moved a little bit more. I rolled over and propped up on one elbow, facing her. I traced circles and other shapes on her back. Then I drew an imaginary line from her back to her stomach. I lazily drew random patterns on her abdomen. I bent my head down and deeply inhaled her wonderful scent. I let out yet another sigh and began to address my child.

"I won't let anything happen to you. I'll protect you… you and your mommy. I love you. I love her a lot too. More than anything you could possibly imagine loving so much… You and your bothers won't lose a mother like your aunts and I did… I won't allow it," my voice trailed off, leaving the words lingering in the air.

A few tears slid down my cheek and hit hers…

"What's wrong, Ichi?" the angelic voice of my Hime said.

She turned towards me and looked up at me expectantly. She patiently waited for my reply, looking up at me with her gorgeous, large, grey eyes. I lost myself in those eyes. They could take my breath away. Instead of replying, I bent down and gently kissed her on the lips. She responded in kind and after of few moments we broke apart for air. She held my face in one of her petite hands and caressed my cheek with the other. She wiped away my tears. I leaned into her hand as it gave me comfort.

"It's okay, Ichigo. It's alright -" she tried to console me…

That snapped me out of my peace. How could she believe that?! I propped myself up, hovering above her with a hand on either side of her head.

"No! No, Orihime, it's not alright. You don't understand. I made a promise. To Sora. To myself. To everyone… but, most importantly, to you. I promised you when we got married that I would protect you. Did I not? I said in my vows that you wouldn't ever get hurt with me by your side. I swore it! Hell, even before we got together I did. I said I would be your knight-in-shining-armor. _I promised you that!_ You can't think that _this_ is OKAY!" I all but yelled as tears freely fell from my eyes and coursed down my face.

"They need you. I need you! Orihime… It's not alright," I whispered softly.

She smiled a tiny smile and said:

"I know that. But _it is_ alright _because_ you made a promise. I won't throw away my life and I couldn't possibly fathom leaving you and the kids. My family. I love you, you know. It would be like ending a novel before it got the chance to begin. It would be like ending forever before it ever started if I just gave up. We don't know all the facts yet. And even without them, I don't think you're alone when it comes to my safety. I know a certain karate champion that would kill everyone here if I died. And I promised _you _that I would always be at your side: guiding you, loving you, and caring for you. I can't do that if I'm dead, now can I? You underestimate me. And yourself for that matter. I know you are scared but we can't let this fear take control of our lives." She said.

She wiped away my remaining tears and smiled brightly at me.

"Come on, let's get some rest. We get to sleep in. It's Sunday and the boys would love it if their Daddy would teach them some new tricks in the pool."

Orihime lied back down and brought me down with her.

"I love you. Thank you… for everything." I whispered in her ears. I wrapped my arms around her and nuzzled her neck.

"Love you, too, Ichigo."

.

.

_~X~_

.

.

* * *

**FIN.**

**Sorry for any grammatical errors! :/ I was in a rush.**

**When Ichigo says that he now has his resolve, it's not his cause to die for. We are leading up to it. We have awhile to go before that.**

**And that was a sad moment of weakness for Ichigo. It's not really weakness but a human moment. Everything is hitting him and he doesn't want his kids to feel his pain when he lost his mother. In a way, he feels almost useless. _Tear _:( He has come a long way and doesn't want history to repeat itself. [Yes, he is still human…. ]**

**Also, thank you to those who reviewed and a special thanks to MissLadyK18, Ermilus, and jylener22. Jylener22 always reviews and is one of my favorite authors. Jylener22 was one of the people to first review this story and has been with it along the way. Giving me helpful tips and always being kind. Thanks! You're awesome! Ermilus has been with my story from the beginning and always leaves great reviews. They're funny too! MissLadyK18 was the first person to make me a favorite author. Her reviews are nice and she's favorited my story. Thank you all! **

**That's all. **

**Well, bye-bye.**

**I.K.**


	9. They're Not Dreams, They're Nightmares

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 9:**

**If They're Not Dreams, They're Nightmares…**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I appreciate reviews very much. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

Last chapter we got Ichigo's thoughts. Now, we get Orihime's … but from a third person POV. She will have her time to shine. I promise!

**WARNING: **This is now rated M. This chapter and chapters to come may be a bit graphic and gory (sorry :/), but I haven't decided on adding lemon just yet. It wouldn't fit.

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo. And Shiro Sagisu owns the Bleach OSTs that fueled my imagination and gave me partial inspiration.

Enjoy!

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

As she lay in bed, Orihime thought of the events that transpired only hours ago. As soon as Soi-Fon had told them of the orders to have Orihime assassinated, Orihime was on her feet and in the bathroom. She threw up everything she had eaten since lunch. She couldn't take it! Everything from the intrusion to the meeting, the accusations, to the painful and gruesome memories put a big weight on Orihime's shoulder. It was too much in one day. She couldn't handle the stress. And being pregnant made it ten times worse. She had a strong heart, but she could only take so much. She put on a strong front for everyone, especially Ichigo, but it hurt on the inside. It was a never ending storm of tears on the inside, while on the outside she was smiling rainbows. She had grown so much, but today she shrank about a foot. Her insecurities got the best of her.

She had gotten some sleep but was now wide awake after comforting her distraught spouse.

_'__Just calm down and relax. Close your eyes and go to sleep. Tomorrow, you'll have a great time with your family,' _she thought.

Soon enough, nestled in Ichigo's warmth, she caved into the needs of sleep.

Bad idea.

_._

_~X~_

_._

_She was running. Running. She'd been running for what seemed like forever. Not stopping. _

_Her throat was on fire. She felt as if she wouldn't stop. Any moment now she would collapse and faint. She couldn't feel her legs; they were numb from running so much._

_She turned around to see exactly why she was running… but… there was nothing there. Now, she got the chance to stop. She slowed her pace gradually until she came to a stop completely. She looked around and only saw the mist and road… it was dark, as if a storm was coming, and cold. Fog was settling quickly and she panicked at the thought of not being able to see – not that her sight was crystal clear at the moment. _

_"__Ha. Stopped so soon? Run little lamb, run. You little, insecure, worthless girl, you. You're weak. Pathetic! Puny is what you are!" the voice yelled out to her. _

_"__What do you want?" she screamed back._

_She needed to escape. Find help. Do something. She turned her body around to face the direction her pursuer was coming from._

_"__Come out!" she called out._

_She knew how to defend herself. Why was she running then? She wasn't afraid. She shouldn't be, at least. She'd end this._

_Feeling a breeze behind her, Orihime froze. Her breath caught in her throat. She stood very still and her eyes grew thrice in size. _

_"__I'm here. you asked for me… now, I'm here," the voice said tauntingly into her ear. Lips touched the shell of her ear, a tongue licked her cheek, and hands latched themselves onto her hips._

_Orihime's breath turned into labored breathing. Her chest felt tight. It grew difficult to draw oxygen into her lungs. _

_The grip on her waist tightened. She stopped breathing completely. _

_"__You're scared… Good," the disgusting voice whispered. _

_The pair of hands gave one last squeeze before she was thrown. Her body jerked violently to the right. She felt her back hit something that felt like rock. A second after the collision of her body and the rock, an earsplitting crack echoed throughout the air. It indicated there was another collision. Her head had hit something – hard. It was another slab of rock. They were easily concealed by the fog. _

_She couldn't get up. Her vision was blurry and she was dizzy. She felt the sharp pains all over, but mostly from her head. It was soon followed but a dull and numb sensation._

_The impact of her head and the slate of rock caused the most injury. Orihime soon felt warmth under her head. She gingerly lifted her hand to her head and quickly retracted it as if she had touched fire. _

_She looked at her hand and gasped. Her hand was slick with her blood. The red gathered under her head, forming a pool, rapidly. _

_She saw the figure with no face advance towards her. He was in all black and his face was the color of darkness as well. Covered in black. _

_Orihime knew she had to get up. She tried healing herself but failed miserably. _

_"__Ayame? Sho?" she frantically cried. "Nagi? Lily? Please answer me! Baigon? Tsubaki?!"_

_She had to survive. Protect herself… and her baby. Their baby. For Ichigo! She promised him! _

_The figure stopped in front of her and roughly brought her up. Her head snapped back and the pain seared through her veins. It came rushing back with a vengeance. Whiplash. _

_"__Silly, foolish, woman. You truly deserve to die. Now… watch as Hell begins to unravel around you," the voice terrorized._

_Her eyes widened in horror. What-? What would this – this thing do to her? _

_Without warning, the figure drove its fist through her stomach. She choked on a scream. The pain was overwhelming. She looked down and saw the waterfall of blood. It made her want to vomit._

_The figure turned its clenched fist around in her stomach, making the wound larger and more painful to Orihime. Tears ran down her face and she couldn't breathe or think properly. She began to scream and begged it to stop._

_The figure turned its fist once more and roughly withdrew it. It then dropped her and threw something, an object that looked unidentifiable – like an alien, at her. It landed at her feet. She was too weak to get up and look._

_"__Do you know what that is?" a familiar, husky, male voice asked._

_The, newly identified, male bent and picked up the object. He then kneeled down next to her and put it in her line of sight. Silently, she cried as she looked at it. Tears streamed down her cheeks. She shook her head in the negative. She had an idea but didn't want it to be true. (Her pain was nothing more than a dull throb now. Her baby was her concern.)_

_"__You don't know what this is, Hime? Or rather was? Better yet, who? Hime, __**darling**__, it's our baby. Orihime. That is our child… Dead." Ichigo said before throwing it casually to the side. Orihime was sobbing uncontrollably. She couldn't believe it. This wasn't her Ichigo. _

_He chuckled and stood up, flashing a crooked smile. _

_"__Don't worry. You won't die. I love you too much to kill you…" he said and walked away. _

_She shrieked and sobbed. She wailed to Kami. She couldn't breathe anymore. Each breath hurt more than the last. She struggled to get up and find her child. She was weak and collapsed, everything fading to black. The last thing she saw was Ichigo's smirk… _

.

The dream morphed into another one…

.

_Now Orihime was lying in a hospital bed, curled up on her side. Doctors were rushing in and out of the room. Nurses were tending to her and filling out charts. She sat up and looked around nervously. She touched her stomach where her baby was ripped right out of her and gasped. She looked down and saw that she was still pregnant. She looked around nine months and ready to pop. She winced as she was seized with a bad contraction._

_A gentle hand smoothed down her hair. She snapped her head up and her eyes met with amber ones. A small smile was sent her way. _

_"__You'll do great, Hime," Ichigo said. He kissed her softly and she flinched. "Relax. You're tense because you are nervous and that's not good for the baby. I'm here, right here, beside you. I'll protect you, so calm down," he comforted her. _

_She sighed in relief. This was her Ichigo. Not that vile, disgusting, barbarian that killed their unborn child. _

_"__Ichi, you won't hurt my baby, right?" she asked._

_Ichigo chuckled. "So, that was what your nightmare was about. I'm sorry. Especially since it was me. I saw you turning and whimpering in your sleep. I figured it was a bad dream. I just didn't think it would be that bad. No. No, Hime, I won't hurt __**our**__ baby." _

_"__I'm sorry. I'm just glad that I am awake now. The time flew. I can't believe the baby is coming," she admitted. _

_Ichigo once again smoothed down her hair. _

_"__I know. I'm excited. In a few hours we'll be parents – again… Looks like everything is almost ready. _

_~X~_

_A few hours later…_

_"__Push one more time! One big one! I can see a head and a shoulder. Just one more time," the doctor encouraged from the foot of the bed._

_"__You can do it, Hime! I'm here. One more push, baby." Ichigo said. "You're doing great."_

_A few minutes later, the cries of a new born baby were heard throughout the room. _

_"__You did excellent, honey. I love you." Ichigo said to his exhausted wife. _

_"__Congratulations. Mr. and Mrs. Kurosaki, you have a beautiful baby – distorted speaking-," a nurse said, holding her baby._

_"__What did she say, Ichigo?" Orihime asked. She looked to where he was standing previously when he didn't respond. "Ichig – AAHHHH! __**ICHIGO?!**__" _

_Ichigo was laying face flat on the floor. His head was separate from his body. The cut that severed his head from his body wasn't clean and blood gushed onto the white floor._

_"__Somebody! Somebody help him! Please!" she shrieked. She knew he was far beyond help but screamed anyways._

_She tried to get up but failed due to the pain in her abdomen. She looked up and only saw the nurse who was holding her baby. She was tenderly stroking the face of her child._

_"__Give me my baby," Orihime said in a hoarse voice. She sniffed once more before finding a voice to speak._

_"__And find help for my husband."_

_"__I would but… I think I am busy with my new child… Watch… as Hell unravels around you," the voice said as it was far beyond being recognized as a woman's._

_Those words. Those words were the same that Ichigo had spoken to her when he hurt her. She shook her head and closed her eyes, praying for the madness to end…_

_~X~_

_She opened them again… and saw her brother, Sora, her husband, Ichigo, sons, and friends sitting together at a picnic table in a park. They were eating and laughing. Ichigo was playing with the boys. He tossed Akihiro high into the sky and caught him, twirling him around afterwards. He did the same to Akihiro's twin, Daisuke. She sighed but immediately tensed again. Her Sora-nii was dead…_

_So, what was going on? She shook her head to try and clear her thoughts. When she looked at them again, she noticed they had stilled._

_"Ichi – Ichigo?" she asked quietly._

_She walked slowly to them. She placed a hand on Ichigo's shoulder. As soon as she touched him, he fell apart. He fell like a house of cards, and landed on the ground at her feet. His limbs were severed in several places. He was pale, as if he had been sitting there for a long time and there was no more blood in his body. He was nothing more than an empty corpse. _

_She placed a hand over her mouth to muffle a scream. Orihime backed into Tatsuki and turned to see her do the same thing her beloved husband had. She gagged. Orihime closed her eyes tightly. _

_"Please! Stop it!" _

_She opened her eyes and saw their bodies' torn limb from limb, scattered around. Not her boys… her baby boys. Not her friends, so close and dear to her heart. Especially Tatsuki, she was like a sister to her. And Ichigo, her husband, lover, and best friend… The only one missing was Sora. Where was he? _

_She turned around again… only to be hit in the face by Sora and fall faint._

.

_~X~_

.

_"Weak." _

_"Puny."_

**_"Pathetic!"_**

_._

She "awoke" to taunts as the dream morphed again...

_._

_"You're weak!"_

_"Disgusting!"_

**_"You don't belong here!"_**

_She sat up and covered her ears, but the taunts only grew louder. She began to sob. She looked around and saw that she was sitting in darkness that stretched on for miles. _

_"Whore!"_

_"Murderer! You killed Kaien, you **BITCH**!"_

_She was sure she had heard Miyako's voice along with Kaien's, Mayuri's, and Tatsuki's. But most of all, to her disappointment, she heard Sora's and Ichigo's. They told her how she was a burden and would be the death of them. Or in Sora's case was… _

_"You horrible excuse for a mother!"_

_"Pathetic excuse for a wife!"_

_"Slut!"_

_She rocked back and forth, shaking her head and crying, as the insults continued to no end. She told herself that they weren't true but had a hard time convincing herself of that when they grew obnoxiously louder and louder, each more vile than the last, more degrading with each passing minute… until they stopped. _

_"Woman…"_

_When she thought she didn't hear anything, she removed her hands from her ears and stood up. _

_"Woman…"_

_Orihime thought her heart stopped for a second. Blood was pounding loudly in her ears as she put a face to that voice… It could only belong to one. _

_She turned to voice the direction from which the voice came._

_"Woman, are you afraid?" Ulquiorra asked. _

_She gasped before letting out a shaky breath. He looked at her with a face devoid of emotion, yet expectantly. She knew the answer to this question. But what she didn't know was whether or not it was true in this situation. So, she answered what she did before. _

_"No… I am not."_

_"You are truly foolish and naïve then," he replied. "Let me show you fear…"_

_She watched as he took confident, lazy strides towards a fallen warrior. Only when he picked up the form carelessly did she know what he was showing her… Ulquiorra was showing her a repeat of history… _

_He was going to kill her love again…_

_"Where is your savior now?"_

_"NO!"_

_Her screams echoed throughout all of Las Noches._

.

_~X~_

.

"Ichigo!"

She sat up immediately, clutching the blanket to her nude chest, panting. She began crying, loudly. Ichigo woke up, startled by her outburst.

"Hime? What's wrong? What happened? Why are you crying?!" he inquired, quite alarmed.

She hugged him quickly. She cried into his shoulders. Ichigo wrapped his arms around her and tried to soothe his frightened wife.

"It's okay. Shh… Tell me what's wrong, baby," Ichigo pleaded.

"Please, Kami, please. Ichigo!" she sobbed. "He – he killed… I can't! You and Sora and Tatsuki – please! Don't leave me. Don't hurt me. We need you! I -"

Ichigo didn't know what to say.

_'She must have had a nightmare,' _he concluded.

"Calm down, Orihime, calm down. Hey, I'm not going anywhere. I'm here. What happened? Did – did you have a bad dream? A nightmare? Honey, nothing bad will happen to you, or the kids. I promise. I'm here, Hime." Ichigo said, rubbing her back.

Her breathing was starting to slow down…

"Can you please explain to me what happened? Please?"

Ichigo was beginning to panic. He didn't know what to do. She looked so scared and it hurt him to know that he couldn't help her. He could only comfort her to the best of his best of his ability… and he knew that wasn't enough.

Orihime liked to bottle things up inside of her sometimes and he hated that. Sure enough, she shook her head in the negative.

Ichigo took a deep breath before addressing her again.

"Hime, look at me. Orihime. Listen to me. Whatever happened to make you like this, is over. Something big, something horrible is going to happen. I have a bad feeling. We need to stay together. I don't know what's going on, but if all else fails, we [need to] have each other. You can talk to me." Ichigo told her.

She shook her head in his chest. She lifted her head and look at him with watery eyes. Orihime placed a hand on his cheek.

"Just promise me." She said in a broken, soft whisper.

He looked down at her and nodded. Ichigo put his head on her forehead.

"I promise you that. I always have. You promise that you'll open up to me?" he asked. "You have always told me when I ask but you have a bad habit of keeping what you want to yourself…"

She nodded after a couple of moments.

"Let's just sleep now…"

She nodded again and they lay back down in each other's embrace. Orihime was still shaking slightly. Ichigo tightened his grip on her.

"I love you."

"I love you, too. Ichigo."

.

_~X~_

.

* * *

**Fin!**

**Hope you like this update! Sorry for the wait.**

**I also apologize for the mistakes. They will be fixed by Monday. **

**This chapter may have been confusing and may have seemed to do nothing with the story but it does. You have to read in-between the lines and I am also trying to get you to understand their relationship in this story better. Orihime is troubled and it caused these nightmares but there is a twist to that… you will just have to wait. (Hint: It has to do with the baby.)**

**Next chapter will be up soon! I will also update _Only Eyes For Her…_ soon. It wasn't about Orihime in Rukia's shadow. It's vice-versa of that. **

**Read and Review please!**

**Love you all.**

**I.K.**


	10. Too Much To Ask For

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 10:**

**A Peaceful Day Is Too Much To Ask For…**

**Author's Note: **This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I appreciate reviews very much. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

**WARNING: **This is now rated M. This chapter and chapters to come may be a bit graphic and gory (sorry :/), but I haven't decided on adding lemon just yet. It wouldn't fit.

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo. And Shiro Sagisu owns the Bleach OSTs that fueled my imagination and gave me partial inspiration.

Enjoy!

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

Orihime woke up three more times that night, each after a horrible nightmare. She witnessed her beloved Ichigo die several more times, relived her brother's death, was beaten by her parents, was privy to the murderous intent of Grimmjow directed towards Ichigo, raped by Aizen, tormented by Ulquiorra, and watched her children die countless times. Each time she woke up screaming for Ichigo, her only incessant solace in this world. She sobbed into his chest as he held her and rocked her back to sleep, murmuring sweet nothings into her ears.

The last time she awoke in a fit of hysteria, she managed to wake up the twins as well. They began to cry loudly for being disturbed so early. Daisuke was cranky and whining, while Akihiro was screaming and throwing a tantrum

It was six o'clock in the morning…

Ichigo, having slept less than a wink all night, got up to soothe his boys. He pulled on a pair of boxers and a pair of sweat pants that were near the bed. Before he left the room he turned to Orihime. She was sitting up, hands covering her face.

"I'm sorry. I -" she was cut off by a pair of lips that covered hers in an effort – that was quite effective, by the way – to silence her.

"Hey, it's not your fault. It's okay. I wasn't getting much sleep anyways. I'll take care of the boys. You go take a hot bath," Ichigo whispered.

Orihime nodded her head and looked at the ground.

"Thank you."

"No thanks needed. I _am_ their father after all. It's my job, unless… you're not telling me something," Ichigo joked lightly and looked at her with a mischievous glint in his gorgeous, smoldering amber eyes.

Orihime snapped her head up at the comment, blushing madly. She began to stammer indignantly and Ichigo raised an eye brow expectantly at her.

"Well, you look guilty," he said smugly.

"Don't you have to go check on the twins?" she asked in a fatal attempt to change the subject.

"Yes, I do. But if I'm not the father then…" he trailed off and plopped back down on the bed. The twins' cries grew louder.

"Ichigo! What – I – get up! Listen, you are the only one I have ever been intimate with. You, however, I can't speak for. What do you have to say now, hmm? How many orange headed b-b bastards do you have running around? I'd be surprised if that number was low with how hard it is for you to keep junior in your pants!" she huffed and turned her head away from him. That took a lot of guts to say and no matter how much she wanted to turn to him and see his reaction, she knew that she had to turn away. She was having trouble keeping her own mirth under control and wanted to be taken seriously.

_'He really is something,' _she thought as she waited for his reply.

"Whoa now!"

_'Bingo!'_ she thought, self-satisfied.

Ichigo wrapped an arm around Orihime's waist and flushed her to his chest.

"Ichi!"

"Hime!

"Go check on the twins. They're going to be even angrier now," Orihime said.

"Let them cry a bit more. That's payback for earlier. My head still hurts. And I was _kidding_, little miss. What is a relationship without trust?"

"You big baby. They're more mature than you sometimes," she replied and Ichigo chuckled.

"As long as I'm your baby… But anyway, it wasn't _me_ who couldn't remember all too much of _my_ bachelor party. You on the other hand… You are another story entirely." Ichigo said in her ear as if telling a secret and then proceeded to place butterfly kisses down her neck.

Orihime gasped at Ichigo's low jab. It wasn't her fault Rangiku spiked her drink! Her blush came back with a vengeance. Ichigo responded with his own mock gasp.

Orihime stood up and hit Ichigo with a pillow before crossing her arms under her ample chest. She turned her head to the side, like a five-year-old, and said:

"Mou, Ichigo, that's not fair! Now go check on Daisuke and Akihiro!"

He chuckled and stood up to whisper in her ear again.

"Fine, but I really was enjoying the view. It was an amazing one at that. Quick question though, Hime. Are you trying to cut glass?"

He backed away to look at her confused face before realization hit her like a ton of bricks. She looked down and screamed. Her nipples were standing alert to the world. She grabbed his shirt off the floor and hurriedly put it on. Her face was as red as tomatoes.

"I don't see why you're trying to cover it up now. I've seen you naked a million times before. And you're about to take a bath. Why cover up -?"

"GO! Now!" Orihime said as she pushed him out of their room. She sighed to herself and closed the door as he began walking to the twins' room, who, surprisingly, were quiet again. She heard Ichigo's laughter from down the hall.

Orihime had her moments of being a complete and total ditz but was she really that clueless? She stood completely naked and didn't even notice! Did she really do it that often to not notice? And then, of course, Ichigo had made a joke of it to try and comfort her. She had to admit though, it worked.

_'Kami, how much I love that man is unbelievable.'_ She thought as she crossed the room to the bathroom.

She sighed again and let bygones be bygones. It was only her husband after all, not a complete stranger. She grabbed a towel from the closet as she walked by the closet and walked into the bathroom…

.

_~X~_

.

In Daisuke and Akihiro's room:

"Hey, what are you two doing up? You are supposed to be sleeping," Ichigo lightly reprimanded as he picked up Akihiro, who had his arms wide open.

"Sworry, Daddy. Mommy cries rweally loud," Daisuke said sleepily. He rubbed his eyes and tightened his grip on his favorite stuffed lion. "She scared."

Ichigo was rocking Akihiro back to sleep. Akihiro had his arms around Ichigo's neck and was snuggled up in his father's warmth. Ichigo started to bounce Akihiro up and down gently while rocking him.

"I know. I'm sorry. Mommy doesn't feel – Daisuke?" Ichigo asked as what his older son said was processed in his mind.

"Hmm?" was the sleepy whine of a reply from Daisuke, whose eyes were now closed.

"How –how did you know it was mommy crying? How did you know that she was scared?" Ichigo asked. He needed to know that his ears weren't playing tricks on him.

He stopped rocking Akihiro and turned to face Daisuke.

"Answer me, Daisuke."

"The man told so," Daisuke replied, starting to fall back asleep.

"What man?! Daisuke, what man?" Ichigo almost yelled. He crossed the room and stood in front of Daisuke's bed.

"Look like Uncle Kaien. Said Daddy said s'okay. No more crwying. Just mommy cuz' she is sad." He replied.

Ichigo couldn't breathe. He staggered back from the now sleeping Daisuke. He heard Akihiro snoring softly and knew he was asleep too.

This man. This man who was claiming to be his old friend, Kaien, had been in his children's room. He was in the room where two of the most precious people in the world to him slept. He calmed them down while Ichigo was occupied with his wife. Ichigo wouldn't be surprised if this man had anything to do with Orihime's nightmares.

Ichigo was beginning to shake violently. He took deep breaths and tightened his grip on his baby boy.

And… for the first time in years…

… he heard his Hollow.

**_'Long time no see... Another threat to the princess, King? You really don't know how to protect her, do ya?_'**

Ichigo stiffened. He placed Akihiro in his bed after a few moments and made his way to his room to check on Orihime. He stopped half way and looked back to his children's room. He was at a cross road. He didn't know what to do. He closed his eyes trying to block out his hollow's nagging.

He walked back to the twins' room to bring them to his. As he walked into the room, he was hit with a wave of nausea. He lost balance and stumbled to the window. He closed his eyes and took deep breaths. Something felt wrong. It felt off..

_'What the hell is going on?'_

**_'That seems to be a common trend with you, right? Being clueless, that it is…I bet he's out there. Right now. Let's go get 'em. Rip his head off. He messed with the Queen, our princess, and the royal heirs. Let's. Kill. Him."_**

_'Dammit! I can't act careless anymore! It's not just me who will be affected! It's them too. All of them… Her. I would be hurting her too… If I could hurt him without there being any **fucking **repercussions, I would. I just -'_

Ichigo's rant to his Hollow was cut short by a scream and what sounded like a struggle. He heard a pounding and what sounded like objects falling. As soon as he felt Orihime's reiatsu drop significantly, he grabbed Daisuke and Akihiro and flashed to his room without a second thought. He placed them inside the closet and covered them with an extra blanket. He grabbed Zangetsu and closed the door.

"Ichigo!" came her strained scream. Orihime's reiatsu was fluctuating wildly.

"Orihime!"

He hadn't thought anything was wrong with her at first; he thought that maybe there was an intrusion in the house. But when he felt Orihime's reiatsu drop, he panicked and made a decision to protect his whole family at once.

Ichigo burst through the door to the bathroom.

"Orihime?!" he yelled frantically. He scanned the large bathroom in search of his wife.

There was water all over the floor and the tub was overflowing as well. There were objects strewn across the floor and a cabinet was knocked over. The glass door to the shower was broken, shattered, and covered in blood.

Ichigo closed his eyes and desperately tried to get a hold on Orihime's reiatsu. He had always been terrible at sensing reiatsu – that was Orihime's cup of tea – but he urgently needed to find her. His skills had grown over the course of years he had been with Orihime – with her help of course. He concentrated but found nothing.

"Orihime? Please! Hime?!" he screamed. He ran all over the house screaming for her, like a mad man. He ran back to his room to look once more. She was strong and he knew that. Maybe they had come to kill her and she fought back and was now hiding. Maybe they had sensed Ichigo coming to her rescue and had fled the scene.

_'Please let her be okay. Kami, please,'_ he thought.

He walked back into the room and stopped dead in his tracks…

He felt his Hollow stirring inside of him and felt a growl rumbling deep within his chest.

.

_~X~_

.

**"Put. Her. Down. NOW!"**

.

_~X~_

.

* * *

**Fin!**

**That was it. Hope you all like it! And I know you will all hate me for that cliff hanger but I just couldn't resist the temptation. All mistakes will be fixed by tomorrow afternoon. **

**REVIEW! **

**Reviews are my fuel! The reviews make me want to keep writing. (Or you could add this to your alert list. Favorites list?) ~ raising eyebrows~ **

**Thank you to all those who reviewed on the last chapter. And to those who wondered: No, her dreams aren't foretelling anything! **

**And _Only Eyes For Her..._will be updated soon. Promise! **

**Until the next update… **

**I.K.**

**[P. S. ****Any guesses on who Daisuke's lion was? :)]**


	11. Saving (part I)

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 11:**

**Saving Those Who Don't Need Saving… part 1**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I appreciate reviews very much. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

**_Italicized and bolded_** = Zangetsu or Hichigo Shirosaki "speaking" to Ichigo.

Regular = What is happening or people communicating.

_Italicized_ = Ichigo's thoughts.

**Bolded** = Hichigo Shirosaki talking.

**WARNING: **This is now rated M. This chapter and chapters to come may be a bit graphic and gory (sorry :/), but I haven't decided on adding lemon just yet. It wouldn't fit.

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo. And Shiro Sagisu owns the Bleach OSTs that fueled my imagination and gave me partial inspiration.

Enjoy!

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

Ichigo was fuming. He was pissed…

There was his Hime. She was dangling lifelessly from the arms of a man who was hovering over their bed. She was carelessly wrapped in a towel and had blood dripping down from a concealed wound and he saw another injury near her temple. The blood running down her leg wasn't slowing and for a second, fear - panic – coursed through Ichigo's being. What if the baby was hurt also?

Ichigo knew he couldn't act rashly for that would cost his dear wife's life…

Ichigo hated feeling useless and right now, that's what he felt like. He was absolutely now use to his precious Hime. She was hurt now and he couldn't do a damn thing. It was his fault that she had gotten hurt too. Because of his damn procrastination, she was now in the arms of the enemy. But… that would have left Daisuke and Akihiro vulnerable as well.

Ichigo turned his head to face their direction before facing this man again.

He tightened his grip on Zangetsu. His knuckles were turning white and little crescents were imprinted on his palms from his nails. His Hollow was screaming and his manifestation of Zangetsu ready…

In his inner-world, Hichigo was beginning to tear down buildings. He was destroying the entire area around him.

A long time ago, Ichigo and Hichigo had come to a mutual, unvoiced, agreement that they would both protect Orihime - no matter what. Besides, Hichigo was very possessive of Orihime like Ichigo. Protective and possessive were the first two words in their dictionary. They were forever present in their vocabulary…

Ichigo felt his blood begin to boil and his reiatsu begin to spike, dangerously fast. If you looked close enough, you could see the smoke coming out of his ears…

**_'Hands off! Hands off! God dammit! Kill him. NOW! I want his head!'_** Ichigo's Hollow shouted at the top of his lungs.

Ichigo's clutch on Zangetsu tightened. The man's chuckling stopped him from lifting it and burying it deep within his chest. It confused Ichigo momentarily…

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Kurosaki. Kurosaki _Ichigo_… Well, unless you were planning on leading a very lonely life."

"The _hell_ do you mean?! If you so much as touch a hair on her head, I'll kill you!"

"Well, it would seem that I am a dead man walking, aren't I?" the man said as he began to laugh maniacally. "Kill me, then! I await death by your sword!"

"I won't repeat myself. Put my wife down." Ichigo said in a low, barely controlled voice.

"Come then. I do love a challenge."

Just as he was about to attack, Zangetsu's voice came to Ichigo.

**_'No, Ichigo. Look. Look at his figure closely.'_**

Even his Hollow, who was eager for the fighting to begin, was silent as they scrutinized the man before them.

He was of medium height and build. Compared to Ichigo, he was short, but most people were…

He looked fairly dapper. He had slicked back, shoulder length, black hair. His green eyes shone bright in the moon lit room. The man had on what appeared to be a formal uniform. His hakama and shihakusho were black with red trimming and on his chest, on the front left of the shihakusho, was an emblem. His shihakusho sash belt was a dark red and his boots were black. He was wearing what most Espada would have worn if there were any alive today, with the exception of a lone one…

The emblem on the man's shihakusho had three swords pointing North, all towards a silver crown with a red tear drop on it. Underneath the crown and sword conglomeration was a golden star. And to the left of the ensemble of symbols was [Japanese] writing. Ichigo didn't bother reading what it said. He was too busy with something else that caught his eye.

He saw a ripple course through the man. His whole body moved fluidly, as if he were water and a pebble was thrown at him. Before he could make anything of it, he felt another presence…

**_'Behind you Ichigo!'_** Zangetsu warned at the same time Hichigo yelled, **_'Watch it, dumbass!'_**

Ichigo lifted Zangetsu and pivoted on his heel, bringing his zanpakuto down on the shoulder of an unsuspecting man. He was identical to the man in front of him.

Ichigo looked back at the man to confirm his suspicions: he was just a clone; a duplicate. He saw the man's form's wavering. Ichigo watched as the man's eyes changed color before his body began to tremble and shake uncontrollably. He fell forward and landed at Ichigo's feet. He eyed Orihime and saw that she was levitating in the air. A gold shield began to encase her body…

Ichigo relaxed a little now that the man was away from his princess but quickly returned his attention to the man. He looked at the "man" at his feet and saw him fade away… almost like a Hollow.

"So, that's how that worked… You get hurt and any copies that you have running around die… Who the _hell_ are you?"

"The name's Daburu. Learn it. Remember it," the man said, coughing up blood.

Ichigo dug Zangetsu even further into the man's shoulder.

"You're lying. It's a title, isn't it? Double of what?!" screamed Ichigo.

"Of me, of course. And, you are as good as they say you are. Smart and powerful."

**_'Enough games, King! Dead! I. WANT. HIM. DEAD!'_** hollered Ichigo's Hollow.

Quite frankly, so did Ichigo.

Ichigo sent a kick flying to Daburu's stomach. He watched as the man flew into the closet door. Ichigo flashed over to him and picked him up effortlessly. He threw him across the room. Daburu hit the wall clutching his shoulder.

"Daburu, my ass. Pfft… Challenge who? Your grandma? Not me, that's for sure… And who names their child that? What type of damn name?" Ichigo muttered as he crossed the room to the intruder.

**_'Shuddup, Strawberry. Your name isn't that great either… Kill now and complain later.'_**Hichigo said.

"Take another step and you can say 'goodbye' to the three of them right now. Then, you'll be able to say 'hi' as you wake up in the Rukongai with 'em." A female said from behind Ichigo, effectively stopping him in his tracks.

**_'Another one?! What type of shit is this?'_** Hichigo cursed.

Ichigo turned around and nearly dropped Zangetsu.

A woman dressed identically to Daburu with mid-back, platinum blonde hair and piercing, bright blue eyes stood in front of him. She stood close to Orihime, full encased in her healing dome, with Daisuke and Akihiro standing an arm's length away from her.

Ichigo's eyes were as large as saucers. Daisuke and Akihiro looked at Ichigo with wide and confused eyes.

"Daddy?" Akihiro called out.

"Howwows, Daddy? Where?" Daisuke asked as he spotted Zangetsu.

"D – don't touch them…" Ichigo's voice cracked a little as he spoke.

"Or what?" the woman asked and smiled playfully, like she was teasing Ichigo.

"You'll hurt me?" she taunted. "Well, not before I -"

"You'll leave them out of this!" Ichigo said harshly.

"Of course… right after this…" she said, as her eyes began to glow a fluorescent, cerulean, color.

She swept her hand across Akihiro's face and Ichigo watched his son's eyes widen in frenzy.

"Daddy?!"

His eyes began to flutter rapidly and drooped shut, as he fell to the floor. Daisuke cried as the woman pushed him. Ichigo was frozen in his spot.

He was rooted to the ground in pure terror.

"Sweet dreams, brat." The woman whispered as she repeated the action done to Akihiro to Daisuke. Daisuke fell and joined his brother on the ground, clutching his favorite lion, – a gift from his father – Kon.

The woman looked up and locked eyes with a furious Ichigo.

**_'Baka! You little bitch! Do something!' _**Hichigo bellowed awakening Ichigo from his stupor.

Ichigo brought Zangetsu up and swung at the woman. She blocked it easily and Ichigo kicked her in the gut. She flew back into the closet that her comrade had been previously lying in front of. She flashed behind Ichigo and kicked him in the back.

'She's fast,' Ichigo thought.

Ichigo turned around and blocked her katana with his zanpakuto. He pushed her back and swung again. His analytical side kicked in as her watched her engage him. He assessed the situation carefully…

'She's lower-ranked per say. Not even a shikai I can't even use an attack in here. I'd probably destroy the house and hurt my family.' Ichigo assumed.

**_'Be cautious of her power and speed. The boys, they're okay, but we don't know what kind of state they're in. Though, we can still connect with what little spirit energy they have. We don't know how much longer we will be able to,'_** Zangetsu informed Ichigo.

The two danced around any serious fighting for a while longer… Attacking and blocking. Blocking and attacking…

Had Ichigo wanted to, he would have killed her by now, but right now… he wanted answers.

"You know, you haven't even asked my name yet… How rude," the woman said and feigned being offended by Ichigo's manners.

"I don't care! I want to know what you came for and if you won't tell me then **I. WANT. YOU. GONE!**" Ichigo roared.

Each word spoken was enforced by a swing of Zangetsu. Each time Ichigo crashed Zangetsu down upon her, she buckled under the brute force. She was beginning to struggle...

With one more fierce blow, she was on the ground…

She spat her blood on the floor and laughed as Ichigo walked up to her.

"It's Akumu… My name is Akumu… it… it means nightmare… And I think you already know what we want," she said as she lifted a bloody finger towards Orihime.

Ichigo whipped his head around and followed her finger towards Orihime.

Orihime's shield cracked into a million, tiny orange fragments. Ichigo turned his head as her body fell to the ground with a thud and her head lolled to the side. She was still unconscious. Ichigo still felt her faint trace of reiatsu.

He turned to the woman named Akumu, but before he could open his mouth to say anything, he felt the presence of "Daburu". He looked ton where he had kicked him earlier and only saw the crimson red of blood.

He felt the presence behind him and shifted his weight from his left foot to his right and pulled Zangetsu's blade closer to his hand by the chain on the hilt. He tightened his grip, pivoted to his right and swung Zangetsu in a wide arc – effectually impaling Daburu in the chest. He used this to his advantage and kicked – yet again – in the gut. Blood spurted forth from his mouth and wound. He dropped his own katana as he fell.

Ichigo stormed over to where Akumu was struggling to get up and pulled her up by her shihakusho. Woman or not, he'd make her go through hell for messing with his family. He threw her over to where Daburu lay and picked up the incapacitated man's katana.

When he was right in front of the man, he impaled him – right through the abdomen. He had successfully trapped him to the ground. The man screamed and cursed Ichigo. "Stay down."

"Your turn," Ichigo said, failing to notice the black swirls seeping into his eyes. Nor did he realize how demented he sounded.

As he raised his zanpakuto, a small cero was fired his way from the right. He easily blocked it with Zangetsu, skidding a few feet to the side – literally. He cocked his head to the side lazily and eyed the new comer.

**"A cero? Wonder who taught you that… And you are?"** Hichigo asked indifferently, now fully converted to his Hollow form. Hichigo had taken over and Ichigo hadn't realized.

The man was fairly tall, surpassing Ichigo by only a little bit. He surpassed the others in the room by a lot with, maybe, the exception of Daburu. He reminded Ichigo of Chad. Although, he was scrawnier and had cleaner cut hair. It also had faint traces of blond in its brown, curly mass.

"Hōka-han."

"Hōka-han!" cried Akumu. The man looked at her unresponsively before looking back to his opponent.

**"Great another freak whose parents were drunk when they named you. Arsonist? Really? Too literal for my taste but then again, who am I to talk? King ****_is_**** a strawberry and a protector after all…"**

"They're titles."

**"We've established that. Now… if you don't mind… I was just about to cleave her head off,"** Hichigo said.

He looked back to the woman in front of him, quivering in fear. Her eyes widened as she stared back into piercing gold irises and pitch black sclera.

He raised Zangetsu, but was interrupted yet again.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Hōka-han said calmly.

**"You know, I am tired of all of your empty threats! Shuddup already!"**

The man lifted his hand and a flame soon engulfed it completely. He closed his hand into a tight fist, diminishing the flame, and lifted his index finger. A single flame appeared at the tip, seemingly hovering as to not scorch the flesh beneath it….

**"Oh? You wanna play? Alright then, let's play!"**

.

_~X~_

.

* * *

**Done! **

**Hoped you all like it! Sorry for mistakes, they will be fixed tomorrow and another chapter will be up. **

**Hōka-han literally means arsonist in Japanese.**

**Akumu means nightmare(s) in Japanese.**

**Daburu means double [of] in Japanese.**

**All of this will be explained soon…**

**REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW!**

**I.K. out! 'Till next time. (: **


	12. Saving (part 2)

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 12:**

**Saving Those Who Don't Need Saving… part 2**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I appreciate reviews very much. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

**_Italicized and bolded_** = Zangetsu or Hichigo Shirosaki "speaking" to Ichigo. (Or Orihime hearing Hichigo talking.)

Regular = What is happening or people communicating.

_Italicized_ = Thoughts or flashbacks. (Or Orihime hearing Hōka-han talking. )

**Bolded** = Hichigo Shirosaki talking.

**WARNING: **This is now rated M. This chapter and chapters to come may be a bit graphic and gory (sorry :/), but I haven't decided on adding lemon just yet. It wouldn't fit.

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo. And Shiro Sagisu owns the Bleach OSTs that fueled my imagination and gave me partial inspiration.

Enjoy!

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

.

_~X~_

.

_"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Hōka-han said calmly._

**_"You know, I am tired of all of your empty threats! Shuddup already!"_**

_The man lifted his hand and a flame soon engulfed it completely. He closed his hand into a tight fist, diminishing the flame, and lifted his index finger. A single flame appeared at the tip, seemingly hovering as to not scorch the flesh beneath it…._

**_"Oh? You wanna play? Alright then, let's play!"_**

.

_~X~_

.

The sheer speed that was Hichigo Shirosaki rivaled that even Byakuya Kuchiki. The man named Hōka-han was faring well so far but was receiving hits directed his way.

Hichigo appeared behind Hōka-han as he tried to send more flames Hichigo's way. He slashed open Hōka-han's back with a single swipe across the backside of the man. Sending a roundhouse kick to Hōka-han's right hip and landing expertly to the left of him, he avoided another hopeless attempt at burning the Vizard [made by Hōka-han]. He was taunting the man who flaunted his "_birth name_", his birth _right_. This man was showing off his _gifts_ and Hichigo decided that he would do the same before Ichigo decided to resurface and reclaim control of his body again. Hichigo had always enjoyed a good fight… His favorite part had always been toying with his prey…

.

_~X~_

.

_'Get up. Get. Up.'_

She continued to wander around this place. It was foreign place. She had never been here in her life – not once. It was like a dreamland, but she couldn't be sure. It was like a place that everyone dreamed of at one point in their lifetime, if not multiple times…

Maybe the little blue men were playing a trick on her… Wait, no that would make it the little green men that were always invading her dreams and making her kick Ichigo in her sleep.

Orihime continued to walk down an empty and narrow road, content to sorting things out logically… There were multiple buildings around her but they were all empty. There was not a single person to be found here. It was rather lonely and she didn't like being alone, now that she had a family.

_'Get up. Get. Up!'_

There was that annoying voice telling her to get up again. It would go off, like an alarm, every five minutes or so. Oddly enough, it sounded like Tsubaki… and sometimes it would sound like Ichigo or even Tatsuki-chan… They were all people – spirit in Tsubaki's case – that she loved, but she didn't want to get up right now. The nightmares had stopped and even though the dream was odd, it was nothing compared to _her_ type of odd.

Orihime had come to the conclusion that this was a dream. There was no way in the land of little blue men that she was all by herself. It just couldn't be! It was too quiet and too dark… There were no stars in this night sky and the air was too still. If this, in fact, was a nightmare, she honestly, didn't want know what would happen. This frightened her because, not too long ago, she had woken up because of her "dreams". Over all, Orihime was confused… Was she awake or asleep?

Just a little while ago, she had woken up because she had had several tragic and horrific nightmares. All she had wanted to do was relax. That's when she went to take a bath…

Bath.

The word struck a cord in her. She remembered taking a bath and… and… and an intrusion. An intrusion from a woman who had the brightest blonde hair she had ever seen. What she had found to be the most enticing about this woman were her eyes, which were glowing a bright blue.

Orihime had just come up from under the warm and comforting water in the tubs when she saw the woman's reflection in the mirror. Orihime called Lily, Hinagiku, and Baigon forth without a second thought…

_~X~_

_"Who are you?"_

_"Shouldn't matter. It won't be of much use to you because you won't live long enough to be able to use it… But I'll share anyways… It's Akumu." _

_The woman spoke confidently she remembered. Like she was sure of something…_

_"What do you mean? I was told a man was ordered to kill me. Not a woman… What – what are you here for? If you don't mind me asking… I mean, I __**am**__ going to be dead soon, so it shouldn't matter, right?" Orihime asked. She was very smart and cunning; she wasn't __**really**__ going to die. She was just humoring the woman to get answers…_

_"Is __**that**__ how much faith you have in your __**Prince**__ Charming? How pathetic." the woman, named Akumu, spoke with a voice laced in malevolence. _

_Orihime just looked at the woman as she slowly got out of the water and slipped a towel around her soaking wet body._

_"Well, I wouldn't go as far as to say I have no faith, it's just that I am assuming from the way that you are poised and so confident-looking, that he will be occupied soon… You have brought reinforcements; why else would you take on a captain of the 13 Court Guard Squad? You have heard of the Gotei 13, right?" Orihime asked as she cocked her head to the side in a curious gesture. She waited for the woman to reply as she evaluated the situation she was currently in; it was no pretty predicament either. She weighed her options and made an assumption as to whether or not it would be a good idea to dispose of this woman now or wait for answers… _

_Akumu narrowed her eyes dangerously at Orihime and her snide remark. She could hope that her master gave her the opportunity to inflict torture on Orihime, if not kill her. Her wide set baby blue orbs narrowed to slits as she watched Orihime expand her shield to encase her completely as she contemplated her choices. Akumu's hand twitched at her side. She wanted to play her hand on her hilt and get ready for a battle, but that would probably result in her death. Orihime's eyes were watching her every movement. She was itching to slit Orihime's throat…_

_"Yes, you arrogant little whore, I __**have**__ heard of the Gotei 13. I have heard of the '__**elite'**__, unfeeling and cold killer organization that you are a part of…" _

_The word "elite" was accentuated by quotations of the hands. _

_Orihime cocked her eyebrow at the statement that held so much hatred that she could practically feel the hate radiating of off Akumu. _

_'Arrogant. Whore? That's a new one…' Orihime thought._

_"As for your previous question, it is simple really. We are here for you. You see, you're the factor that tips the balance of things in favor of the Soul Reapers. We're just evening out the battle field… Kaien wanted to wait until you gave birth to the brat that you are carrying around as of current, but… he doesn't have the power to make a decision like that…" she trailed off. "I guess he never really did cut off ties with you people after all…"_

_Akumu shrugged nonchalantly, but Orihime perked up at the name of her old friend and comrade._

_"K – Kaien? It's him, then! He's alive after all?!" Orihime questioned frantically, forgetting to keep her guard up. Her concentration broke for a split second and that was all that was needed. That was the one mistake that ruined everything in a moment. That was the one mistake that gave Akumu an opening to strike her…_

_When Orihime's concentration broke for that crucial, yet mere second, her shield faltered…_

_Akumu was on her in a second, unsheathing her katana and knocking Orihime back into the shower. Her head crashed into the glass door. The collision created a large, booming sound – one that got Ichigo's attention – and glass cut into Orihime's skull. _

_Akumu didn't give her time to recover and sent her flying towards the mirror. Orihime flipped backwards and landed on the balls of her feet, right on the counter, before she could crash into the glass. Orihime flash-stepped to the bathroom door, in hopes of finding her husband for help, as she was in no position to fight in her condition as of present… Akumu blocked her way._

_"Neru!" Akumu cried and swept her arm in a large arc in front of Orihime's face. Orihime felt cool air rush into her face and she inhaled a gas that held an unusual odor. Orihime staggered back a few steps before regaining her composure and kicking in the chest. Orihime threw her hand to the right and her Santen Kesshun slammed Akumu into the wall. Orihime ran for her target again and just as she reached the door, just as the door knob came into her reach, she was yanked back. She hit the counter and fell on her hands and knees. AS she stood up again, she felt nauseous. _

_'A toxin. That's why she called sleep. It was an attack. To subdue her opponent. Maybe a medical tactic as well… Ichigo. I need to warn him.' Orihime thought as she assessed the circumstances, piecing the actions and effects of those actions made by Akumu. _

_Orihime clutched the towel closer to her body and took cautious and slow steps backwards, as to not get struck by the katana Akumu was wielding. She was beginning to feel extremely tired. She willed her eyes to stay open as her body movements, usually very fluid, became slow and forced._

_With what little energy she still had, she opened her mouth to scream out to her beloved._

_"Don't you dare, you bitch…" Akumu sneered._

**_"ICHIGO!"_**

_She knew the risk, but the effort was worth it as she felt Ichigo's reiatsu spike at her scream._

_"Shit! You little… Ugh! You know what? That's enough of you for one lifetime!" Akumu spat out at Orihime and kicked her in the stomach, sending her into another piece of furniture._

_Orihime screamed as she landed on glass that slid through her thigh. Cutting through her like a knife slicing butter, the glass impaled her easily. She saw, out of the corner of her eye, blood run down her leg as she struggled to right herself. She felt a sharp pain in her abdomen region and placed a glowing hand on her stomach._

**_This_**_ baby __**would**__ survive…_

_At her new resolve, a tiny shield appeared on her stomach. Her powers would help this baby and their master and all others that she loved the same…_

_"No you don't… __**Just die already!**__" screeched Akumu. _

_Just as she was about to deliver the final blow, a voice stopped her._

_"Akumu… That's enough. Daburu will take it from here. You go take of the children. Kaien-sama will be here soon enough to deal with Kurosaki Ichigo. Just don't die… I won't be able to save you and we both know what will happen if you die…" A man dressed similar to Akumu said before vanishing from sight._

_"Wait! Hōka-han!" Akumu yelled out._

_Akumu turned her attention to Orihime and said, "You got lucky."_

_She hit Orihime in the temple, effectively knocking her out in the process. Her vision became blurred and the bathroom and blonde lady came in and out of focus as she blacked out…_

_The last thing she got a glimpse of was a blur of orange and tan bursting through the door. _

_~X~_

Orihime got the strong urge to begin running again. She had run when she woke up and didn't recognize her surroundings… She called out for Ichigo but got no response in reply. This worried and scared her to an extent…

She was wandering around idly when the heat that had descended upon her became unbearable. It shouldn't be this hot at night. Where did it come from?!

Orihime let out a sigh and screamed again.

"Hello?! Is anyone here?! Please…" she ended quietly.

She walked up to an old shack and leaned against the side of it. There is where the voices began invade her mind.

'Great. Now I am going insane. This heat is driving me crazy. I'm hearing voices now! _~Mou~_ No fair…' she thought with a pout.

_"I wouldn't do that if I were you." _

It was a man's voice. A very familiar voice, at that. New.

_'Hey! I know that voice!' _Orihime thought.

It was the voice that spoke to Akumu and that had mentioned a "Daburu". It was from the man she saw. Unfortunately, she didn't get a look at his face.

**_"You know, I am tired of all of your empty threats! Shuddup already!"_**

She knew that voice all too well. It was Hichigo… and that meant that he had somehow overpowered Ichigo during a fight of some sort or, maybe, Ichigo had decided that it was necessary to use his Vizard powers.

Orihime felt the heat again and looked at the sky.

**_"Oh? You wanna play? Alright then, let's play!"_**

Orihime continued to look at the empty night sky. There something caught her eye…

A burst of orange. A flicker of light…

Almost, like a flame.

_~X~_

This was all a dream! _A dream!_

She could get out! There was no such thing as fire in the sky… The events taking place in the material world, in the physical world out of her mind, must be affecting the dream…

_~X~_

Orihime ran up and down the barren streets of the dreamland. She took turns that lead to dead ends and the edges of cliffs. She ran all over, looking for a way out. Thinking. And it seemed that the more she discovered and figured out, the more the dream fell apart…

Maybe that was a bad thing or maybe it was good. She didn't have time to consider this because she had formulated a theory: if you die in your dreams, you wake up right?

Right.

So…

How the hell was she going to die or even _try_ to "kill" herself if there wasn't any danger to die by?!

_'I bet Ichi-kun would love for us to live in a place where I couldn't hurt myself with my clumsiness.'_ Orihime thought.

Orihime ran and rounded the corner of a building, tripping on an imaginary rock and slid, landing on her side.

"Itai! _~Mou~_ That hurt…" she complained. "I take back that previous thought. I'm accident prone anywhere."

Orihime got up with a groan and dusted herself off. She took a moment to look around and noticed that she was in the same place she was in about then minutes ago.

She sighed and took a deep breath only to wince at the sharp pain in her side. She exhaled slowly and said in a low voice, "Sōten Kisshun."

As she healed her wounds, an idea was born.

She would the Shun Shun Rikka to get out!

She'd destroy everything and force herself to wake up. She'd find the way out…

_'I won't die here… This is all part of __**their **__plan. I won't fall prey to it,'_ Orihime vowed.

_~X~_

"Lily! Hinagiku! Baigon! Create a shield and keep expanding it until I call you back. When I do, come back as fast as you can, okay? Ayame and Sho, when they start, I want you two to form a wide arc and begin rejecting everything you touch. Everything. I want it all gone -"

Akumu interrupted her instructions.

"Foolish, insolent, woman. _No one_ can break through these barriers and that includes _you_. They're mentally supplied and you can't reach my sub-conscience from where you are to try and break them. You'll just waste your time and energy! No one wakes up, until _I_ bid them permission to awaken! With all you special _gifts_ and you can't do anything! Useless and weak, you are!"

"It wouldn't be the first time they have been of no sue and I equally useless… But I won't give up. He needs me, so I'll find a way back." Orihime said confidently.

"Tsubaki! When you reach the top, pierce straight through it!"

She gave the final orders and closed her eyes. She felt the connection with every single one of the spirits that her Shun Shun Rikka consisted of and smiled a tiny smile.

She opened her eyes and swung her hand in a semicircle to her right. A gust of wind blew out as the Shun Shun Rikka began to follow her orders. She saw Tsubaki fly straight up, following her Santen Kesshun. The buildings were beginning to vanish and turn into to ash, debris, and dust.

"Hold on! Just a little more…"

That's when he Santen Kesshun cracked and disintegrated. Now it was left to Tsubaki, Ayame, and Sho. Lily, Baigon, and Hinagiku made the path. It was just left to the others to penetrate the only obstacle left.

_'You guys can do it. Tsubaki, I have faith in you. All of you,'_ Orihime thought, encouraging them silently.

Orihime called Ayame and Shun'ō back to her and looked up at the sky. The last thing she saw was a bright light…

.

_~X~_

.

In the Kuchiki Manor:

"Nii-sama! Did you feel it?" Rukia asked as she rushed into the courtyard of the Kuchiki estate after her brother.

"Yes. Rukia, stay here. Stay with Renji and Akemi. Protect your daughter. I have sent Hell Butterflies to the other captains to alert their squads. I will contact you as soon as possible. Be safe," Byakuya calmly replied.

He left before Rukia got the chance to respond.

She wrapped her robe around herself tighter and hurried back inside the manor.

_~X~_

Byakuya landed in front of the Squad Two barracks where Soi-Fon, Shinji Hirako, and Toshiro Hitsugaya were all waiting for him.

"Let's go before Ichigo gets himself killed along with my first love, the lovely, Orihime-chan."

"The married Orihime-chan, Hirako-san." Toshiro lightly reprimanded.

"I warned them that an assassination was ordered on Orihime. We didn't expect such a sudden attack…"

"Yes, well that was her reiatsu that just spiked at such an uncommon rate. We need to move. If we felt it all the way over here, then something must be wrong. Very wrong. She may need our immediate assistance and I doubt Kurosaki-san's hand are free," Byakuya said.

They all nodded their heads in agreement and took off towards their SouTaichou's home…

.

_~X~_

.

Ichigo regained control over his body and was beginning to feel the effects of a sleepless night when he felt a burst of energy in the room. An explosion of reiatsu. A bright light spread throughout the room and sent everyone hurdling in different directions.

Ichigo caught Daisuke and Akihiro as they flew towards the wall. He landed a safe distance away from the other three people in the room. All eyes – with the exception of Daburu, not moving under his katana, whose eyes were closed from all the blood he lost – were fixated on where Orihime was laying on the ground…

"Hime?" Ichigo asked tentatively.

Daisuke shifted in his arms and Ichigo looked down at him…

"Daddy?" A barely conscious Daisuke called out.

"It's okay. Just look at me. Everything will be fine." Ichigo attempted to comfort the shaking toddler. He didn't want him to see the destruction and gore around them.

Hōka-han took advantage of this momentary distraction to fire at Ichigo. Being that his hands were occupied with his sons, Ichigo had nothing to stop the blast with. He turned around to take the impact of the blast with his back…

Something stopped the collision of the flames and the Kurosaki males…

A gold shield…

.

_~X~_

.

* * *

**Fin!**

**So technically Orihime was trapped in her subconscious, but didn't know it because of Akumu's powers, even though the latter said otherwise. Akumu's powers will be described, along with her comrades', in two to three chapters. Obviously, Akumu has some resentment towards the Soul society and Orihime herself. Wonder what that's about? Ichigo is on control again and help s on the way! Ichigo is about to crazy though! (Hint ~ Hint)**

**Woohoo!**

**Neru means sleep in Japanese.**

**Akumu means nightmare(s) in Japanese.**

**Daburu means double (of) in Japanese.**

**Hōka-han means arsonist in Japanese. **

**I don't know if you were able to piece everything together, but if not just PM me or leave a review about it and I will answer everything in full detail.**

**Next update will be short. It will be part three of ****_Saving Those That Don't Need Saving… (A Cause To Die For...)_**

**I do want to try something though. I don't know if it works or frankly care, but I want to try anyway. So… if I get ten or more reviews for this chapter, the next update will be the very next day from when I hit ten. I don't think I will do this all the time because I can't not update - but it's something new.**

**And go vote! I have a poll open on my profile page - at the very top! The next chapters of ****_Only Eyes For Her…_**** rely on it! **

**Mistakes will be fixed – for everything I have published – tomorrow. **

**_Next chapter (13): Saving Those Who Don't Need Saving… part 3_**

**_Chapter 14: Will of the Heart_**

**_REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW!_**

**Thank you all for your continued support!**

**I.K. :)**


	13. Saving (part 3)

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 13:**

**Saving Those Who Don't Need Saving… part 3**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I appreciate reviews very much. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

**_Italicized and bolded_** = Zangetsu or Hichigo Shirosaki "speaking" to Ichigo. (Or Orihime hearing Hichigo talking.)

Regular = What is happening or people communicating.

_Italicized_ = Thoughts or flashbacks. (Or Orihime hearing Hōka-han talking.)

**Bolded** = Hichigo Shirosaki talking.

**WARNING: **This is now rated M. This chapter and chapters to come may be a bit graphic and gory (sorry :/), but I haven't decided on adding lemon just yet. It wouldn't fit. (And mentions of suicide.)

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo. And Shiro Sagisu owns the Bleach OSTs that fueled my imagination and gave me partial inspiration.

Enjoy!

* * *

_~X~_

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

.

_~X~_

.

_In the Kuchiki Manor:_

_"Nii-sama! Did you feel it?" Rukia asked as she rushed into the courtyard of the Kuchiki estate after her brother._

_"Yes. Rukia, stay here. Stay with Renji and Akemi. Protect your daughter. I have sent Hell Butterflies to the other captains to alert their squads. I will contact you as soon as possible. Be safe," Byakuya calmly replied._

_He left before Rukia got the chance to respond._

_She wrapped her robe around herself tighter and hurried back inside the manor._

_~X~_

_Byakuya landed in front of the Squad Two barracks where Soi-Fon, Shinji Hirako, and Toshiro Hitsugaya were all waiting for him._

_"Let's go before Ichigo gets himself killed along with my first love, the lovely, Orihime-chan."_

_"The __**married**__ Orihime-chan, Hirako-san." Toshiro lightly reprimanded._

_"I warned them that an assassination was ordered on Orihime. We didn't expect such a sudden attack…"_

_"Yes, well that was her reiatsu that just spiked at such an uncommon rate. We need to move. If we felt it all the way over here, then something must be wrong. Very wrong. She may need our immediate assistance and I doubt Kurosaki-san's hand are free," Byakuya said._

_They all nodded their heads in agreement and took off towards their SouTaichou's home…_

.

_~X~_

.

_Ichigo regained control over his body and was beginning to feel the effects of a sleepless night when he felt a burst of energy in the room. An explosion of reiatsu. A bright light spread throughout the room and sent everyone hurdling in different directions._

_Ichigo caught Daisuke and Akihiro as they flew towards the wall. He landed a safe distance away from the other three people in the room. All eyes – with the exception of Daburu, not moving under his katana, whose eyes were closed from all the blood he lost – were fixated on where Orihime was laying on the ground…_

_"Hime?" Ichigo asked tentatively._

_Daisuke shifted in his arms and Ichigo looked down at him…_

_"Daddy?" A barely conscious Daisuke called out._

_"It's okay. Just look at me. Everything will be fine." Ichigo attempted to comfort the shaking toddler. He didn't want him to see the destruction and gore around them._

_Hōka-han took advantage of this momentary distraction to fire at Ichigo. Being that his hands were occupied with his sons, Ichigo had nothing to stop the blast with. He turned around to take the impact of the blast with his back…_

_Something stopped the collision of the flames and the Kurosaki males…_

_A gold shield…_

.

_~X~_

.

"Ori – Orihime?!" Ichigo cried out.

He began to move towards to his, still unconscious, wife but was stopped by a scorching heat. He spun on his heels to protect the boys from the heat. Only there was never an impact. He looked and saw yet another golden shield. Orihime's will to protect her family allowed her to protect them – unconscious and all.

"Don't move. We're not done yet." Hōka-han calmly said to Ichigo.

"Are you senseless? You can barely stand! Hōka-han! Please, let us leave. Kaien-sama will deal with that bitch and her family. Please!" Akumu cried as she saw Hōka-han begin to move towards Ichigo.

Hōka-han looked at his comrades on the floor. He was utterly disgraced and disappointed.

"Isn't that woman supposed to be unconscious? Doesn't your wonderful gift allow that to be so?" Hōka-han asked Akumu in a challenging and condescending tone.

"Don't be stupid!" she hissed. "Of course she is! Look at her!"

"Then why are those inferior beings protected by, what we were told, is her power?"

"Then I'll take care of her now! I won't mess up twice in one night."

"Don't be rash… Besides, you know we are not to kill her. We weren't supposed to harm her either. There will be a punishment as consequence for your actions."

Ichigo took advantage of this slight interruption from Akumu to move closer to Orihime. Hōka-han saw his movements out of his peripheral.

"Kasai No Sen Taiyō."

Ichigo was frozen in his place as the whole room was engulfed in flames. Orihime's Santen Kesshun engulfed the four Kurosakis; it created a large dome around the small family. Yet, he could see the tiny cracks in the form as she wasn't awake to fully focus on protecting her family. It was a subconscious effort.

"Daddy – hot!" whined Daisuke. His tiny forehead was covered in sheen of sweat.

"Shh. I know. I'll – I'll protect you. Just look at me. At Daddy, Daisuke. Look at me." Ichigo said to Daisuke in an attempt to soothe him. He was scared and didn't like being in unknown situations.

The shield was being to crack more.

_'No. Please. Just a little bit more. Hold on!'_ Ichigo thought. Ichigo looked over at Orihime and saw no difference in her current state. Daisuke stared up at him with eyes full of fear.

Ichigo put Daisuke and a now wake and alert – not to mention unusually quiet – Akihiro on the floor. As soon as their feet hit the ground, they rushed to his side and gripped his legs.

"Daddy!"

Ichigo eyed Zangetsu in the dome as well. His zanpakutō was lying on the floor, not fifteen feet from him.

"Daisuke. Akihiro. Go sit next to Mommy. Okay? Please. Sit with your mommy and keep her safe form the dragon, okay? You remember the big, bad, dragon that burned everyone with his fire breath? He might burn her. You don't want that right?" He looked up and saw another crack in the shield. Much larger than the others. He watched as a wisp of flame escaped through the crack and floated to the ground. It was nothing but smoke when it hit the floor.

Ichigo turned back to the boys with a new sense of urgency.

"Please! Go with Mommy. I'll be right back!"

But…

Before he got the chance to move, the shield broke…

.

_~X~_

.

_'It's so hot here. Kami! It's really hot,'_ Orihime subconsciously complained.

She was currently in a place in between dreams – or her subconscious rather – and the material world. Limbo. That's where she was. Limbo…

She had escaped her "dream", but at a price of which she did not know. She tried communicating with her powers but got no response. At first, she thought that they were tired from helping her wake up, but they could at least answer… right? They didn't _have_ to materialize. As time progressed and she still received no answer, she became wary that something else may have been taking place.

Unknown to her, her Shun Shun Rikka was defending her family to the best of their ability, without their main source of conviction. They were waiting for her to find her way out of the place she was lost in…

In her mind, it was like a murky lake. She was drowning.

She could see the surface, but as she tried to reach the surface, it – once again – narrowly missed her reach. She would have to rely on her own and inner strength.

_'Okay, we can do this,'_ she thought.

.

_~X~_

.

"Daisuke! Akihiro!" Ichigo screamed.

He grabbed the boys and hugged them close to his body to try and shield them from the blunt of the flames. He groaned as the flames licked his back, arching it try and relieve just a bit of the pain. The boys let out whimpers of discomfort.

_'Oh, Kami… I'm so sorry,'_ he thought remorsefully.

He looked over to where Orihime laying and started as he saw her body was no longer there. Moving just an inch, caused him a great deal of pain and he hissed in pain.

The heat and agony was unbearable and Ichigo's vision was beginning to blur. His body gave and he collapsed on top of his sons. Daisuke and Akihiro screamed as they were partially exposed to the scorching heat. Ichigo struggled to get up and just as he was sure it couldn't get any worse, the heat, the flames, were extinguished by an unseen force. It was a cooling sensation. It felt like the snow in the winter time back in Karakura town.

It was Toshiro Hitsugaya…

_~X~_

Ichigo strained to turn his head and look at the new comers as he sensed their reiatsu. He got a glimpse of silvery white hair and a green scarf. He had enough strength left to haul himself off of his children.

"Ichigo, stay down for the moment. I'll heal to the best of my ability with my Kidō. Don't worry, Kuchiki-san and Soi-Fon are with the _lovely_ Orihime-chan," Shinji said announcing his arrival.

"The boys," mumbled Ichigo into the ground.

"Didn't I say not to worry, Kurosaki _SouTaichou_? I've got them," Shinji replied. He was acting nonchalant, but his grip in the boys was tight.

He set them on the ground and turned his attention to Ichigo's wounds. Everything was burned, with the exception of his infamous eyesore for hair. Shinji sighed.

"Everything _but_ the hair would be scathed."

_~X~_

Toshiro kept his zanpakutō, Hyōrinmaru, trained on Hōka-han. He looked back and eyed his comrade and his SouTaichou. He glanced back at Hōka-han.

_'They don't look like they are in any immediate danger from the other two, but __**him**__… He doesn't want to go down, does he? He doesn't even look like he can stand anymore.'_ Toshiro thought, analyzing the situation in which they were in.

"Who the hell are you?!" Hōka-han yelled, finally seeming to lose his cool demeanor. He was a man of calculation and accuracy. He didn't like all of these interruptions.

"You are in no position to ask such questions. Someone must have really brainwashed you into thinking that you would be able to get away with attacking _this _family of all families. Were you not informed of who this is?" Toshiro asked, answering Hōka-han's question with one of his own.

Hōka-han narrowed his eyes dangerously as he searched his mind for the name of this man. They had studied to Soul Society and the Gotei 13 long enough. He should know who this is…

He had one way of finding out who that was. But that's when it hit him… Unless things have changed, _that_ was the child prodigy of the 13 Court Guard Squad.

_'Attack. You'll see soon enough,'_ he thought to himself. _'No more hesitation.' _

"Kasai No Sen Taiyō!"

"Are you **_asking_** for a death sentence?! You can't use that **_twice_** in a row. You'll drain yourself of whatever amount of Reishi you have left!" Akumu screamed at her significant other…

As the flames began to spread, all Toshiro had to do was flick his wrist…

"Hyōryū Senbi," he said softly.

As quickly as they came, they were gone. Hōka-han immediately recognized the attack.

"Toshiro Hitsugaya. Captain of the 10th division. Wielder of Hyōrinmaru literally meaning, 'ice ring', idiomatically 'full moon'. Hyōrinmaru is the strongest of all ice type Zanpakutō in Soul Society and allows you to control ice and snow. Your Bankai is Daiguren Hyōrinmaru. And you are the child prodigy that has brought much honor to the Soul Society." Hōka-han said to Toshiro in an arrogant, matter-of-fact tone.

Toshiro stiffened.

"Dammit." He swore under his breath. "Well, since it would seem that you know me, may I ask your name? It would only be fair."

"Hōka-han."

"Hm, it fits," Toshiro replied. "Why are you here, Hōka-han?"

"_That _would be none of your concern." Hōka-han responded. "And, as much as I want to stay here and chat, I really have to finish up my business here."

Toshiro looked back at Shinji and Ichigo. Ichigo sat up and muttered something to Shinji. Shinji nodded and sheathed his zanpakutō. He grabbed Daisuke and Akihiro before disappearing. Toshiro refocused on the man in front of him, only to be met with a sword – not even two inches from his face.

Toshiro tensed to push him back, but he was gone as fast as came. He was kicked from the side. The force of the kick sent him through the wall of the room and outside.

Toshiro whipped his head to side to see Ichigo smirking at him, Zangetsu pointed at Akumu.

"He was uninvited and I wanted him gone," Ichigo said with a shrug.

Toshiro sighed and looked through the whole in the wall and jumped down to face his opponent.

Ichigo saw Akumu move from the corner of his eye and turned to face her. She stiffened and sat back down as he said, "Stay."

Satisfied with her choice, he said: "Good girl."

.

_~X~_

.

He exited the gate and stopped to wait for his lovely counterpart…

"Kisuke, do you know what type of trouble they've gotten themselves into this time?" Yoruichi Shihōin asked as she stepped through the Senkaimon.

"Not idea at all," Kisuke Urahara lied smoothly behind his favorite fan.

"Yes, no idea at all… Huh, I believe you," she said sarcastically before showing exactly why she gained the title of Goddess of Flash.

"Come now, Tessai. We don't want to miss all the fun, right?"

.

_~X~_

.

"Hirako, it's about time. How is he?" Soi-Fon asked as she and Byakuya desperately tried to wake Orihime up.

A golden shield, very much like her own, was starting to appear around her. The shield was flexible and was shaping according to her body. It was opaque, very much unlike her Santen Kesshun. And the more they tried to wake her, or tamper with it, the faster it covered her body. It was like a cocoon and all that was left of her – visibly – was her torso up.

"He's alright. The only person that can permanently take away the scars is Orihime-chan. And she doesn't seem to be able to at the moment," Shinji said, stating the obvious.

Soi-Fon and Byakuya had taken Orihime downstairs and into the living room. Shinji had soon joined them with the twins. Daisuke and Akihiro were sitting on the sofa with a toy each. Daisuke occasionally whimpered and had begun to suck his thumb. Akihiro sat very still and watched everything with rapt attention. At the smallest sound he jumped and turned his attention in that direction.

"Watch them, Hirako. They've been really quiet and we don't know if anything has happened to them," Soi-Fon ordered.

Byakuya watched as the cocoon fully engulfed Orihime. An orange glow soon started to light the room…

"It's a defense mechanism," Byakuya spoke, his deep voice penetrating the silence. "This is the Rikka's way of defending her as she isn't here, but in a Limbo of sorts."

"How do you- ?" Soi-Fon was cut off by Byakuya's demonstration.

He lifted his zanpakutō and tried to pierce the cocoon. Everyone watched as a triangular shield appeared and pushed him back, forcefully, about three yards.

"Well that's interesting, isn't it? She's able to defend while having to fend off the mirages I supplied in her _'dream'_" a male voice asked.

"Oh, great! Another one! Why don't just invite the whole lot of ya' while you're at it?" Shinji asked.

"No problem," the man responded and called out a something unintelligible.

Soi-Fon moved quickly to gather Daisuke and Akihiro, while Shinji and Byakuya stood in front of Orihime's shell.

"Do you mind telling us who you are?" asked Byakuya.

"Oh! That's right! How rude of me?" the man asked, stepping into the light. He looked exactly like Akumu. The only differences were his eye color, height, and hair. He was fairly tall and buff, had bright green eyes and his blonde hair was wild and curly. Take away the fact that he was trying to kill you and he was _very_ handsome. "I'm Sakkaku… Akumu's twin brother. And my friend is Hakai."

A bulkier male appeared next to Sakkaku. He was short and muscular. He had dark brown eyes and hair and was almost as tan as Yoruichi. He sneered at the three Shinigami before charging. He ran right towards where Soi-Fon was with the children. He swung his fist back to hit her. His fist was caught by a bare, tan, hand.

"Yoruichi-chan!" yelled Shinji joyfully.

"You know, it isn't nice to hit woman…"

.

_~X~_

.

Orihime was struggling now. She was trying has hard as she possibly could to get up. With what was happening, she knew she was in some sort of Limbo.

She knew because she was starting to have the dreams she had before again. She's walked down this road a million times and she has been abused a billion times. She's lost her baby too many times to count and she has watched the love of her life be blown to bits over a trillion times.

Orihime had decided that should give up on trying to fight the dreams and just look for a way out.

She's been running for what seemed like days but she can't stop. She won't.

_'Think. Think.' _She chastised herself over and over for not using her brain to get herself out of this mess.

She looked for anything and everything that she possibly can use to wake herself up. She slowed her run to a gait when she saw something in the distance. It was a lake.

_'I'll kill myself. That'll end this chaos. Okay, I'll – I'll take my life… But it's not real; however, I am still scared... What if Ichigo needs you? Don't be a coward!'_ she mentally berated herself.

"Okay," she said to herself. She released a shaky breath and walked into the lake.

The water was warm and uncomfortable. And held an ominous and sinister feel to it… She felt as if she was meant to go in the water…

She turned around to face the way she came in and slowly lowered herself into the body of water. She closed her eyes and just as she was about to go under, a pair of hands grabbed her around the neck.

Her eyes flew open and she gasped; the water entered her mouth rapidly and she began to choke. She fought off the invisible force. The hands tightened around her neck and pulled her to the shore.

.

_~X~_

.

Byakuya was engaged in battle with Hakai, taking over for Yoruichi, being the gentleman he was. Tessai and Urahara showed up and now Tessai was fighting Sakkaku. Shinji and Urahara were discussing the night's events as if nothing was happening.

Everyone stopped what they were doing when the felt the arrival of another person. This person's Reiatsu wasn't welcoming either. It was dark and heavy, almost like when Ichigo used his Vizard powers, but not close enough to claim it was Hichigo making an appearance.

"Shall we go upstairs to see who the new addition is? Though, I have a feeling about the identity of this newcomer," Urahara said to Shinji.

As the battles continued, they shunpo'ed upstairs…

Shinji looked out of the whole in the wall to observe his friend and fellow comrade in battle. Toshiro was attacking Hōka-han with nothing held back. Ichigo was fighting a man that looked awfully familiar…

Though their battles were against common enemies and going on in close vicinities, they could not be any more different. It was interesting to watch.

"So what do you think, Kisuke?"

"Well it would seem our good friend, Kaien, has returned to us, hasn't he?"

"Yes... He has."

"Soi-fan and Yoruichi-san have the children, right?"

"I think? Yes... Who else?"

"That is correct. Let us get to Kurosaki-san now."

"Well... That might be hard..."

"How do you mean?"

"You see, it would seem that her Santen Kesshun has decided to wrap my precious and first love in a cocoon of sorts and we can't penetrate it."

"Hmm... A problem indeed. Well, our work is cut out for us, now isn't it?"

"And what about those two?" Shinji asked, motioning to Daburu and Akumu on the ground.

"Boo!" Urahara said and watched as they jumped a bit.

He laughed and said: "They shouldn't be a problem, _but_ if you want, _you_ can babysit them."

"Sure. Why not? I need a good laugh," Shinji said, accepting the offer.

Urahara nodded and flashed away from sight.

Shinji sighed.

"Ichigo… Please, don't do anything we'll all regret later."

.

_~X~_

.

Ichigo didn't know what to think when Kaien appeared behind him and threw him out of the whole in the wall. He honestly wasn't feeling up to par and didn't want to fight this man. Kaien was feeling the exact opposite.

"Ichigo Kurosaki! We meet again! How long has it been? Huh? How long has it been since your _'lovely'_ wife let me die?" Kaien screamed.

This was not the Kaien Shiba that Ichigo once knew. This was not his dear friend.

"Kaien, please! This isn't you. Please! Think about what you are doing," Ichigo pleaded with him.

"No! I serve the man who _saved _me. And I must follow orders; therefore our business is done here. You are done here! No more words. Nothing has to be said. Only one thing needs to be done and if we cannot accomplish our goal without the interference of you people, then we shall get rid of every single one of you! Have fun in the Rukongai, Kurosaki _SouTaichou_."

Ichigo wasn't prepared for the force that came with his old friend. He had no choice but to release his Bankai.

"Bankai! Tensa Zangetsu!" He shouted.

"Why fight? You can't keep up with me anymore! You're just asking for a quicker death! Let me ask you this: why fight? What, or _who_, are you fighting for?"

"I'm trying to save my wife, dammit!" Ichigo screamed.

"Really?! Do tell me how you save one that doesn't need saving! Answer that! Because she was never in harm's way! So, how do you plan on saving her? Right now, the only one that can even remotely come close to saving her, _saving us all even_, is her!"

Ichigo was stunned into silence…

"What do you mean…? Saving one that doesn't need saving… What the hell is that supposed to mean?! Ichigo bellowed.

Kaien began to laugh maniacally.

"It means that we've already won…"

.

_~X~_

.

Inside, nobody paid any attention to Orihime's cocoon starting to move. Nobody noticed her thrashing around to get free. Nobody realized anything, until her scream pierced through the fighting that was taking place that night…

.

_~X~_

.

* * *

**Fin!**

**Akumu means nightmare(s) in Japanese.**

**Daburu means double (of) in Japanese.**

**Hōka-han means arsonist in Japanese. **

**Kasai No Sen Taiyō means Fire of a Thousand Suns in Japanese. **

**Hakai means destruction in Japanese. **

**Sakkaku means illusion(s) in Japanese. **

**Obviously, they're all titles and that will be explained later. I have also come to realize that there is no plot really. But I have reread everything and I remember that I wanted everything to unravel slowly. That's why I immediately jumped into the problems, because it would take a long time to explain. **

**This chapter was all over the place, but I tried to somehow incorporate everyone and get everything I needed before the end of the chapter in. Chapters 15 and 16 should pretty much sum everything up and end the night – at last! Chapter 14 however will be a jump into the present. The first chapter was about Orihime. The 14****th**** chapter will be 1 year and 6 months from the story line point and will be about Ichigo. I don't know if you were able to piece everything together, but if not just PM me or leave a review about it and I will answer everything in full detail.**

**And go vote! I have a poll open on my profile page - at the very top! The next chapter of **_**Only Eyes For Her…**_** rely on it! It will be the last chapter and it will be full of surprises. **

**And thanks again to icypinkroses for her help with this chapter. Can't wait to start our story and stay strong. :) You're an awesome author. Go read her stories; they're great!**

**Mistakes will be fixed tomorrow. **

_**Chapter 14: Will of the Heart**_

_**REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW!**_

**Thank you all for your continued support!**

**I.K. :)**


	14. Will of the Heart (present)

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 14:**

**Will of the Heart**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely, but I am more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I appreciate reviews very much. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

**WARNING: **This is now rated M. This chapter and chapters to come may be a bit graphic and gory (sorry :/), but I haven't decided on adding lemon just yet. It wouldn't fit

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo. And Shiro Sagisu owns the Bleach OSTs that fueled my imagination and gave me partial inspiration.

**_ATTENTION!_** This is only tidbits of what is happening in the present. This is what is currently occurring, like in chapter 1… The first half of this absolutely has to be chapter one. It has nothing to do with it really. Well, it does but I can't really tell you whether it goes before or after. You can guess and tell me in a review… This will probably show up, at the most, twice more in the story. Then it morphs into what is going on with Ichigo. _**SO, YES THIS IS THE PRESENT!**_ If you haven't read the first chapter for some reason or have forgotten what happened, well here is a refresher of sorts. Really short… I have my reason for writing this like this, so just bear with me please. It's just a time jump, nothing that serious. We're going to the present. As in 1 year and 6 months after chapter 13. **And after this chapter, I won't be updating for, ****_at the most, _****three weeks. I will try to update at least one more time this week but I don't want to end for a while in a cliff hanger and I already know it will be that way. Sorry :(**

Enjoy!

* * *

**_~X~_**

_The last thing she remembered were his soothing words in her ears… His strong, muscular arm wrapped around her torso and his other extended over her arm, his hand over hers. His silent plea, but encouraging gesture. His words…_

_"It's okay, baby. I'm here now, Hime."_

_He felt her body tremble and her knees give out. He held her body close to his and helped her stay in an upright position. He crushed her petite frame to his from behind and gave her all his support._

_"Let go. Just let go, and please don't die. Please."_

_His voice trembled at the end. She wanted to reply. To chastise then tease him for acting like he wouldn't see her again, but she couldn't trust herself, since she didn't know herself. If she spoke, her voice, her words that always calmed him, would fail her._

_'Goodbye, love,' she thought._

_Then…_

_Everything went black..._

* * *

_She remembered the war, all the fighting, and screaming. Most of all though, she could envision her sight being clouded, smeared with the crimson pools surrounding her. The metallic taste in her mouth, and the cold feeling. All the bloodshed was unbearable… and most of it was theirs. It was that of the last remaining Quincy who fought along with the Gotei 13… the Taichou and fuku-taichou and… from her family. The battle was an atrociously bloody one._

_Lady Luck must have decided she would not play a part in their victory; that they must earn it. Furthermore, her sister, Karma, must have demeaned it the perfect time to strike them for their sins, when it hurt the most… When they were all so vulnerable. Her strike was fierce, much like a cobra._

_She was almost brought to tears as all the memories surged through her mind, as they flood her thoughts._

_She recalled Rukia yelling out to her, pleading with her to not die. To not die for the sake of the twins, for her newborn waiting, ever so faithful, for Mommy and Daddy to come home… for her friends and family who wouldn't, ever, be able to move on if she died. For his sake…_

_"For Ichigo's sake. For Ichigo, dammit, don't die. Because, he'll find a way to leave if you die, then everyone will suffer. Your kids. Your family. The Soul Society. They can't lose a SouTaichou like him – we can't afford to lose you either. Come on! I know you can hear me! Orihime!"_

_Renji Abarai was there as well. He was the fuku-taichou of squad six, right under Kuchiki Taichou, as always. Still loyal. He was moving up. He was soon to become a Taichou. Renji squeezed Orihime's hand, his other arm around the sobbing Rukia. She wept into his body. He spoke to Orihime as well. They all spoke to her…_

* * *

_She could remember, but could not get up. She was steadily gaining consciousness… Just not fast enough, because the battle was still raging on, and not far from them. And no definite winner could be defined yet._

_She had to remind herself of her cause to fight. To get back up from her falls. To continue with all her might._

_Because she had her cause to die for and he was waiting for her…_

* * *

**.**

**.**

**_~X~_**

**.**

**.**

* * *

He watched her fall. Frozen in place, he watched her fall. Her lifeless corpse falling with nothing to stop the descent. He was rooted to the ground, watching his wife fall. Her head turned slightly and he caught sight of her emotionless eyes. Those grey orbs that were so full of life and emotion; dead. Her body hit the ground and blood stained the ground beneath her. It pooled around her…

"I told you it was all a waste. Now the one thing, the one person that gave you even a small fighting chance has perished. What will you ever do?" He distantly heard the question from the man whose name was even eradicated from his brain as he watched his beloved fall.

When he felt her Reiatsu spike, he knew what she was going to try to do. It just confirmed his suspicions when she began to collect Reishi from the other spiritual beings and objects around her. He had faith in her…

He just wasn't expecting the all too sudden drop in her Reiatsu. It was as if the link between them was suddenly severed.

His only hope that she was still alive was a very faint sensation.

He saw them running towards her. Rukia was right in front, screaming; tears flowing freely from her eyes.

"Ori – Orihime!"

He didn't recognize the scream as one from anyone he knew. It took him less than two seconds to realize that the guttural and strangled scream tore from his own throat.

* * *

**_~X~_**

He got there first. Shunpo'ing to the spot where she lay.

They had never seen their Captain so distraught and broken. He threw himself at her cradling her cold body in his arms. He cried harder that he did when his mother died.

He had promised her! **_Promised! _**_He swore to her that he would protect her and he just stood by and watched her fall…_ He had grown overly confident and had decided to let her go. He was right to try to keep her away when she tried to go to the front lines. His love blinded his better judgment and it kept him from doing what he should have done. He relented because she was his wife. Now, all he could do was ask why…

There was no one to blame but himself. He knew; he always had the slightest doubt that she might not be able to pull through, not with everything she had endured not even 48 hours ago.

"Orihime, I'm so sorry," he sobbed.

They all stiffened when they saw a flicker of light on her chest. It was a warm, golden hue. It started like an orb and spread until in encased Orihime completely. It was like her Santen Kesshun.

The sudden movement startled everyone. They all just assumed that it was her Santen Kesshun and Sōten Kisshun working together to heal their fallen master.

"Maybe – maybe it's just her Sōten Kisshun, right? Right?!" Ichigo asked, frantic for answers.

The shield expanded and turned different colors. From the normal golden orange to green to a vivid red. Once it turned red, it began pushing everyone back from her.

"The hell?! Hime!" Ichigo shouted.

"Orihime!" Rukia screamed.

They began attacking the dome over their beloved friend and the fight, that wasn't even thirty feet from them, was forgotten.

"Please, please!" Ichigo said out of new sense of urgency. He was going to lose her again.

_'Kami, no!'_ he thought.

_He was going to lose her again! _

* * *

**_~X~_**

They all watched and knew it was hopeless…

All of the Shinigami were stunned when the enemy pulled back and regrouped to assess the damage done.

_"Soul Society's finest, I now address you. Gotei 13. You should all be aware of the fact that you cannot win by now. And now… I will claim what I need to complete my goal." _

And with that, the leader of all the pain and suffering that had been brought upon the Soul Society, the tyrant that was nothing but a greedy and despicable beast, walked up to the front lines. He waltzed right up to where Ichigo was standing in front of Orihime.

Ichigo looked back at his wife, in her glowing red dome, and looked back at the man walking up to the souls he was in charge of. He tightened his grip on Zangetsu and charged at the man.

"Ichigo, don't!"

"No, Kurosaki!"

"Ichigo!"

Ichigo ignored the screams and the pleas of his friends and continued towards the man he loathed. Anger was burning through his veins. He released a battle cry and swung at the man.

"Getsuga -"

He was cut off as the man disappeared.

He turned around and was greeted by more bloodshed and screams. He watched as they all fought to keep him away from his coveted object – Orihime. He watched as he cut down his friends with ease and made his way to the red dome. What scared him the most was when he walked through the dome and picked Orihime up like the dome was an invisible barrier. Like it wasn't a hindrance at all.

They all fought to get her out of his filthy hands. Those hands that were covered in so much blood. They wouldn't let him take her.

"**_Why?!_** Why do you worthless pieces of **_trash_** fight for her? It is already too late to save her! Enlighten me!" he roared.

"Because, it's the will of our hearts…" Rukia spoke as she struggled to stand again.

"… beating as one…" Renji continued.

"You'll never know how much one would go through to save a piece of their heart. We can't just let you walk away without trying. She's worth more to all of us than that. I won't be satisfied until my wife is at home and is rid of the nightmares that plague her mind at night because of you _fucks_. I don't care if I have to die; I'll gladly die for her. And the only thing that is keeping me going is my will to save her, and that's in my heart," Ichigo said confidently, gripping his bloody side as he tried to stand with Rukia and Renji.

**_~X~_**

* * *

**Fin!**

**I don't know if this was confusing, but if not just PM me or leave a review about it and I will answer everything in full detail. Or leave a review. I have my reasons, like I said. I really can't explain too much without giving a lot away – sorry. Next chapter will be Friday, I decided. **

**Hope you liked the jump and I hope it gave you a lot to look forward to :) **

**Next chapter will go right back into what was going on in chapter 13. Please, if you are confused, JUST ASK! I only did this to bring us back up to speed on what was going on in the beginning; in the present. I really can't stress that enough, because I know someone will get confused or momentarily stumped.**

**Anyway, go vote! I have a poll open on my profile page - at the very top! The next chapter of ****_Only Eyes For Her…_**** relies on it! It will be the last chapter and it will be full of surprises. **

**And if you lovely readers can stop by my profile page and scroll down right before you hit my stories and such, there is this little section entitled HELP. If you guys can take a second to read over that really quick and see if you know what stories I am talking about it would be amazing! Just PM if you know :)**

**Mistakes will be fixed tomorrow. **

**_REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW!_**

**Thank you all for your continued support!**

**I.K. :)**


	15. Crying Wolf (part 1)

**A Cause To Die For…**

**Chapter 15:**

**Crying Wolf… part 1**

**Author's Note:** This story is AU. Not entirely b/c I would count it as semi-canon to the end of the Winter War; I am also more like using the manga/anime as guidelines – especially because **I've resurrected several characters** and have promoted/demoted many characters to fit the story properly. There is OOC to fit story better at times as well. Warning: SPOILERS! (In case you haven't seen all episodes or read all the manga - beware! You are all clear for the first couple of chapters though, but in this story there aren't many.)

I appreciate reviews very much. No flames… Constructive criticism is good :)

Regular = What is happening or people communicating.

_Italicized_ = Thoughts or flashbacks.

*I would suggest rereading chapter 13 as a refresher since it has been so long since I last updated. **_NOT_** chapter 14 or you will be confused.

**We are back to the past now! 1 year and 6 months ago again! The last chapter was just like a filler of sorts and was in the future – just showing what was happening.

***This beginning part is just flashes of what happened in chapter 13.

**WARNING:**This is now rated M. This chapter and chapters to come may or may not be a bit graphic and gory (sorry :/), but I haven't decided on adding lemon just yet. It wouldn't fit.

**Disclaimer:** Bleach and its entirety belong to Tite Kubo. And Shiro Sagisu owns the Bleach OSTs that fueled my imagination and gave me partial inspiration.

Enjoy!

* * *

**_~X~_**

(1 YEAR AND 6 MONTHS AGO…)

**.**

**_~X~_**

**.**

_"Do you mind telling us who you are?" asked Byakuya._

_"Oh! That's right! How rude of me?" the man asked, stepping into the light. He looked exactly like Akumu. The only differences were his eye color, height, and hair. He was fairly tall and buff, had bright green eyes and his blonde hair was wild and curly. Take away the fact that he was trying to kill you and he was very handsome. "I'm Sakkaku… Akumu's twin brother. And my friend is Hakai."_

_A bulkier male appeared next to Sakkaku. He was short and muscular. He had dark brown eyes and hair and was almost as tan as Yoruichi. He sneered at the three Shinigami before charging. He ran right towards where Soi-Fon was with the children. He swung his fist back to hit her. His fist was caught by a bare, tan, hand._

_"Yoruichi-chan!" yelled Shinji joyfully._

_"You know, it isn't nice to hit woman…"_

**.**

_The water was warm and uncomfortable. And held an ominous and sinister feel to it… She felt as if she was meant to go in the water…_

_She turned around to face the way she came in and slowly lowered herself into the body of water. She closed her eyes and just as she was about to go under, a pair of hands grabbed her around the neck._

_Her eyes flew open and she gasped; the water entered her mouth rapidly and she began to choke. She fought off the invisible force. The hands tightened around her neck and pulled her to the shore._

**.**

_Shinji sighed, "Ichigo… Please, don't do anything we'll all regret later."_

**.**

_"You can't keep up with me anymore! You're just asking for a quicker death! Let me ask you this: why fight? What, or __**who**__, are you fighting for?"_

_"I'm trying to save my wife, dammit!" Ichigo screamed._

_"Really?! Do tell me how you save one that doesn't need saving! Answer that! Because she was never in harm's way! So, how do you plan on saving her? Right now, the only one that can even remotely come close to saving her, __**saving us all even**__, is her!"_

_Ichigo was stunned into silence…_

_"What do you mean…? Saving one that doesn't need saving… What the hell is that supposed to mean?! Ichigo bellowed._

_Kaien began to laugh maniacally._

_"It means that we've already won…"_

**.**

_Inside, nobody paid any attention to Orihime's cocoon starting to move. Nobody noticed her thrashing around to get free. Nobody realized anything, until her scream pierced through the fighting that was taking place that night…_

**.**

**_~X~_**

**.**

The hands that had locked themselves around Orihime's throat only tightened as she clawed at them. She fought them with every ounce of her quickly fleeting strength. She writhed erratically, aiming to get her captor to release her… The hands had begun to shake Orihime up and down; every time her face came up to the surface, Orihime saw a flash of features. A different face each time…

Aizen.

Ulquiorra.

Grimmjow.

Sora.

Kaien.

Ichigo…

And there was another man who she never had seen before among the mix. It was hard to pick up on his profile but every time she saw his eyes, Orihime swore she saw malice and enjoyment with a hint of clouded desire in them.

The person strangling her was desperately trying to kill her but was torturing her mentally with every glance she took at a new face. Torturing her every time she was brought to the surface again so she could grab another breath of air, just for her to be sent to the brink of death again… That's all her tormentor was doing anyways; they were just prolonging her demise from Hell.

And when the pain became so unbearably noticeable and trying to avoid the suffocation – not to mention mental tormenting – became so ridiculously tiring and draining, she felt her ashen grey orbs start to close.

_'You did what you could… Just rest now. Just let it overcome you,'_ a voice rang in her ears. Her arms stilled and Orihime felt the pressure on her neck loosen up.

_'No… No! __**NO! **__They want me to give up, but I __**can't**__…' _Orihime thought as she opened her eyes and began kicking and punching again.

**_'No!'_** her mind, body, soul and … heart shouted as she started to give up. The gentle healer's efforts had been futile and her body was protesting in spite of being forced to uselessly flail around. Orihime's legs and arms felt like lead, her vision was blurry, and her throat was raw from the water… The auburn-haired beauty's thoughts were muddled and Orihime had truly overexerted her herself. The most favorable option was to give in to temptation.

_'No…'_ she thought almost weak-heartedly.

Another kick. Another shake of the head…

_'No.'_ she repeated again with more conviction.

Swing her arm this way. Swing them that way. Another tug at the hands gripping her throat.

"**NO!**" she screamed as she finally broke free from the terrors that had been playing out that night in her mind…

**.**

Her scream echoed and pierced through the sounds of metal and destruction, silencing all. It pierced straight through her hold, shattering her cocoon.

**.**

**_~X~_**

**.**

The only sounds that were heard around the house-turned-battle-file were the sounds of swords clashing, bodies impacting objects, grunts of exertion, and the attacks – both offensive and defensive – being called out.

The movement around the Kurosaki household ceased as a single shrill scream resonated throughout the night…

Kaien stiffened. He knew what that meant. It meant that Orihime had broken through Sakkaku's Zettai-Shitsunen… It meant that Orihime was awake. Orihime being awake meant that they needed to end the night before she was physically able to get up…

_'Dammit! The things I get myself into,'_ Kaien mentally cursed. They should have went through with his plan… This plan had too many flaws and loopholes. One wrong move and it was over; it was too risky. Hell! They would have been better off if they had attempted the assassination of Orihime Kurosaki… But he really didn't' feel like killing his old friends.

**_~X~_**

Ichigo was in the middle of the backyard, pushing Kaien far from the house, when he heard Orihime's scream. He'd recognize her voice anywhere and the fact that she screamed meant that she either was awake or was hurt. He stilled in his movements and felt his blood go cold; his heart stopped and his face drained of color.

Ichigo's blood was beginning to boil and he turned his fury towards Kaien… They met in a clash, swords colliding and emitting a shower of sparks.

"What the **_fuck_** did you do to her?" Ichigo snarled. He studied Kaien's face and saw what came across to him as remorse.

"Something we had to… But I am sorry… Ichigo, it didn't work," Kaien said sadly.

The two pushed away from each other and landed a good distance away from the former. They looked at each other critically, as if sizing the latter up and analyzing their current predicament.

Ichigo was slightly panting; the only indication was the rapid rise and fall of his chest, wincing with each breath. Kaien was leaning slightly towards his left, as if to keep his weight off of his injured right leg; his right hand gripped his side.

"This is only the beginning, am I right Kaien?" Ichigo called out in question even though it was more of a statement than an inquiry.

"Yes… Unfortunately, yes… and things will only get worse from here," Kaien answered with a frown marring his features. "Yamamoto was foolish and a coward to pass on his problems to you instead of facing them. It isn't fair and I apologize…"

Ichigo was about to respond when a man flashed in front of him and punched him in the gut, swinging his arm with full force and slamming Ichigo into the house – sending him through the Kurosaki home and out to the front yard…

**_~X~_**

A high-pitched scream momentarily distracted both Toshiro and Hōka-han as they fought. The stopped their movements and looked at the house.

"What the hell was that?" Toshiro asked under his breath. He looked over to Ichigo and Kaien and saw that they too had ended their own brawl. Kaien looked to be in his own thoughts; he was shocked stiff. While Ichigo was frozen in his place as well, blood leaving his face as he paled. He was slowly getting to a boiling point. His Reiatsu was spiking, raising dangerously fast and his face was contorting in anger.

He watched as Ichigo attacked Kaien again – somewhat how he did when Ulquiorra Schiffer told Ichigo that he had forced Orihime to go to Hueco Mundo with the intentions of making her look like a traitor all those years ago.

Hōka-han watched the scene intently and gave Toshiro the opening he needed to finally strike him down…

"Hmph… About damn time," Toshiro muttered as he released a sigh. Now he could go help with the children, the other intruders, or possibly even Orihime.

Toshiro glanced down at Hōka-han's uniform; his eyes attracted to the symbols over the man's heart. Something about the emblem and the writing was familiar. .. Maybe he had seen it or read about something with a picture of it at the library in the Seireitei. Or maybe it was at the Academy. [And] as Toshiro was coming to a conclusion, he tensed, sensing the presence of another getting close to them.

_'Something's off…'_ he thought as the Reiatsu disappeared as quickly as it had come.

Toshiro looked to his right and saw Ichigo now addressing Kaien. Again, he felt someone and then they disappeared. It was as if they were flickering over to where the men were in the back of the house.

He brushed off his misjudgment as the anxiety and adrenaline left from his fight with the man at his feet. Sparing a glance at Hōka-han, Toshiro squatted to inspect the emblem on the front of his shihakusho…

_'Three swords… Blood and crown. Crown…'_ he thought. It was on the tip of his tongue. The more he looked at it, the more he remembered. He had definitely seen that before…

The young prodigy stood up as the signature of another's spiritual pressure became prominent again – coming closer. Placing his hand on the hilt of his zanpakutō, Toshiro stood up. He couldn't put his finger on why this all felt wrong and he wouldn't get the chance to figure it out as he was hit on the back of the head, an earsplitting crack resounding through the air. Just as his eyes were closing, he caught sight of the man whom Toshiro assumed to be the culprit of his current state, punch Ichigo through the house…

**_~X~_**

Shinji pushed himself off of the wall when he heard Orihime scream. He whipped his head around and narrowed his eyes, furrowing his brow.

"Kisuke! What the hell was that?!" he shouted to his friends downstairs.

Shinji turned around in time to see Toshiro get knocked out by the same man introduced to them earlier as Hakai. Leaving Toshiro's body to fall to the ground unceremoniously, Hakai then interrupted Ichigo and Kaien's fight. With a single punch, he sent Ichigo through the house – making the Kurosaki household rumble. Shinji gripped the wall as it shook and looked outside.

_'How the hell did he get to him so fast?' _Shinji thought as questions with no answers ran through his mind. The man's strength was unbelievable as was his speed. And if this "Hakai" had already migrated outside, that meant he had beat Byakuya and maybe even the others. And Byakuya never lost… Only ever losing a battle to Ichigo – with the exception of a few others as well.

_'The children… Orihime! Shit!'_ Shinji thought as he prioritized what was important at the moment. He turned around to race down to the first floor of the house. Unbeknownst to him, Akumu was in a low crouch behind him; she jumped up and kicked him in the side of the head, knocking the Vizard to the ground. Using his initial shock to her advantage, Akumu swept her hand over his face.

"Neru," Akumu said hurriedly. "Sorry, but it would seem that play time is over. He'll be arriving soon and we've already messed up beyond belief so, if you'll excuse me, my comrade and I really must be going.

Akumu stood up and removed Daburu's katana from his stomach and threw it to the side. The man groaned a bit in pain as she helped him stand up. Akumu gingerly wrapped an arm around him and moved towards the hole in the wall. Hōka-han flash-stepped to where they were and lifted Daburu's arm to place it around his own neck.

"You should have stayed down there!" Akumu spat out.

"Don't argue. Let's go!"

They turned to leave but stopped when Shinji grunted. He was on all fours, blinking and shaking his head. He was trying to force himself to stay awake.

"Stay down! You'll only get yourself killed!" Akumu hissed.

"What … are you going to d-do to her? Why… her?" Shinji forced out.

"Kami!" she kicked him over and pushed her comrades to the wall. "Go!"

Shinji groaned as her tried to fight off his sudden sleepiness. His eyes were getting heavier and heavier. His limbs felt too heavy to move and every drawn breath was labored. His eyes moved around frantically, trying to find something to lock onto and they did as Kisuke Urahara slowly walked up to him.

"Kisuke," he mumbled.

"Shinji," Urahara sighed. "I am, sorry… But you will understand soon enough…"

"W-what do you -?" Shinji was cut off as the blunt end of Urahara's cane hit him in the face.

**_~X~_**

Akihiro was the first to react when his mother screamed, snatching back his hand from Soi-Fon and running to the couch. He ran as fast as his little legs would take him. As soon as he was down the hall – away from the guest room they were hiding in – and around the corner, he stopped.

"Shit!" Yoruichi cursed under her breath. She gave Daisuke to Soi-Fon and told them to stay quiet and hidden.

"Akihiro!" she yelled as she shunpo'ed throughout the house calling for the boy. "Akihiro! Come on, it's not -"

Hakai punched her in the temple. She skidded back a few feet and turned to face him.

"That hurt… I'm impressed though; that is quite the hook you have there. You don't mind if I show you mine, do you?" she asked and flashed in front of the man, delivering a round house kick to his neck. She punched him in the jaw and gave another kick to the gut…

The two frayed and did more damage to the already collapsing house…

Soi-Fon heard the two's fighting getting closer to where she and Daisuke were, so she hugged him tighter and used shunpo to go to the living room.

_"Kisuke! What the hell was that?!"_ she heard Shinji scream.

In the living room, she saw Orihime still laying on the couch, but the cocoon was shattered. Releasing a small sigh, she silently moved in the shadows. She heard Byakuya and Sakkaku battling outside; Byakuya not even breaking a sweat…

Slowly making her way to the couch, Soi-Fon gently moved Orihime's shoulder. When she received no response from the young captain, she moved her shoulder again.

_'Come on,'_ she thought urgently. She looked around and didn't see Tessai or Urahara. Looking down at Orihime, she sighed and moved away from her. Daisuke whimpered as she crouched down to continue moving throughout the destroyed home. She rubbed his back and tried to sense any other sources of incoming threats, coming up with none…

Yoruichi was searching the house for Akihiro and now Soi-Fon and Daisuke as well. When she had finished off Hakai and went back to where she had left her friend and 'nephew', she was mildly surprised to see that they weren't there.

Running throughout the house, she checked every crook and cranny – only to come up empty handed. She cursed Ichigo and his friends for making the damned house so big. She ran into the family room in the back of the house and felt her eyes grow thrice in size at seeing the same man she just gave a beating to, knock out Toshiro. How the hell did get there so fast? Never mind that... how is hell is he still standing?! She watched as he attacked Ichigo next, sending him through the house. The house rumble and she stumbled slightly as she almost lost her balance… She turned around and started running to where Ichigo was when a thump – sounding like a body falling to her – distracted her. It was coming from where Shinji had gone with Urahara not too long ago…

Soi-Fon was making her way to where she saw her Taichou go as he flew through the house after Hakai had punched him. But a thump upstairs drew her attention as she caught onto a wisp of a familiar spiritual pressure, Kisuke Urahara. Shinji's was calm, too calm and relaxed – as if he was sleeping. The other three signatures were foreign to her, so she assumed it was the woman and two men, Shinji had described earlier.

Tightening her grip on Daisuke, she made her way upstairs…

_"Kisuke,"_ she heard Shinji mutter.

She froze in her place and crouched down against the wall.

_"Shinji,"_ she overheard Urahara say. _"I am, sorry… But you will understand soon enough…"_

_"W-what do you -?"_

Another thump.

What had just happened?

She peeked around the corner and saw Shinji's body spread haphazardly on the floor. She quickly pulled back and ran back down the stairs.

_'Kisuke… I have always known that he can't be trusted…' _

She stopped downstairs to try and locate where Yoruichi might be with Akihiro. She had no clue what was going on and decided that she would get the children and Orihime away from this mess. She closed her eyes and tried to reach out to her friend when she heard a giggle to her right. She whipped her head around and saw Akihiro smile at her and run away.

"Akihiro! Stop," she demanded.

Mentally cursing, she ran after the boy…

Yoruichi was getting irritated and fast. There was no reason for Akihiro to run off like that. There simply was no explanation as to why he would. It was Orihime's scream that triggered it, but knowing that something was wrong, besides the fact that it was extremely dangerous, he should have stayed put.

Never. Never has Akihiro or Daisuke for that matter, acted out or ignored what he was told to do. It just didn't make sense. She rounded a corner and saw Kisuke talking to someone; she heard the last bit of their conversation before she was thrown to the side by Hakai.

_"… Well then it isn't a clean, fair fight, now is it?" _

_"Ahh… My dear old friend, Kisuke Urahara. Who said that this would be a fair fight?"_

"Kisuke! What the hell is this? Where is Tessai-" she was cut off by Hakai pounding his fists into her fallen form. She covered her face with both arms and kicked the man away from her. She quickly got up, as did Hakai, and just as she was about to send him to the Rukongai, she felt a hand on her shoulder.

The man Urahara had been talking to restrained the bulkier man from attacking again with a single look. Hakai bowed before going to join his comrades gathering in the back.

She shrugged off Kisuke's hand and turned her rage to him.

"What are you doing?!" she screeched.

"It's time for us to go," he calmly responded.

"Go? Go where?! We can't leave them! And Akihiro is missing," she yelled, not caring about her voice raising.

Urahara moved his body to the side to show her Soi-Fon, Byakuya, and Shinji's body lying on the floor – the three seemingly unconscious. Yoruichi glanced at the three bodies before turning her glare to Urahara.

"Where are the boys, Kisuke," she growled.

"The boys will be fine. They all will be fine," the man next to Kisuke spoke. "Right now though, we all have our works cut out for us. We're all going to have to do our part."

"Who the hell are you?" Yoruichi sneered at the man.

He just chuckled and pulled off the hood on his robe. "Yoruichi-chan… I'm offended."

**.**

**_~X~_**

**.**

Orihime rubbed her eyes as she slowly sat up. She looked down at her body and saw various wounds and blood seeping through a man's t-shirt and boxers someone had put on her. Putting her hands over her stomach, she closed her eyes and focused on sensing the tiny amount of Reiatsu her child had. Sighing when she felt it, she fully sat up and looked at her surroundings.

She was in the living room in the front of the house and there was glass and wood everywhere. She felt a breeze and saw that the windows were broken. Furniture was smashed into pieces and the couch next to hers was broken in two. Actually everything around her was broken save for the sofa she had been on…

She got up and walked into the halfway, trying not to step on any glass. She poked her head out of the living room and saw the front door open and hanging off the hinges. The staircase had dents in it and looked as if two people had been throwing each other into the walls. She tiptoed into the foyer and looked up the stairs. Slowly climbing each stair, she made her way to the top and saw that it too wasn't shy of damages. It wasn't as bad as downstairs, but it was still bad. And most of it looked like it was coming from the hallway that led to the master bedroom.

Orihime walked down the hall, using the wall as support and called out to her family. And each time she got no reply.

"Daisuke? Akihiro?" she softly called out as she walked into their room. She called again and tried to raise her voice, but it wasn't any use because her throat was sore – raw. It hurt to even speak as low as she was now, but she still tried. Orihime opened the door and poked her head in. The young mother saw that the room was still in order, but was empty of its occupants and turned around to go to her room. Ichigo wasn't responding either so maybe they were with him. She tried not to panic, but the destruction of her home told her that something bad had happened.

With one hand clutching her head and the other using the wall, she made her way to the master bedroom. She gasped upon coming into the room but immediately regretted it as her head and ribs throbbed in protest.

There was blood on the floor. Everywhere you looked there was blood and carnage. She walked into the room and saw blood on the bed and covering the walls. She saw a huge hole in the wall and gawked. What could have possibly caused that?

She took a few more steps but stopped as she stepped on something wet and squishy. She stepped back and looked down almost threw up. On the floor underneath her was a pool of blood and small pile intestines. She felt the bile rise to her throat and bent over to upchuck…

Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, Orihime stepped over the obstacles and looked through the hole. In the backyard there was even a mess. A disaster! What happened to her home? And where was everybody?!

"Ichigo?" she called.

No response. Orihime frowned. Her husband always answered her. That's the only way they got things done… communication.

She turned back around and crossed the room to go check the bathroom. When she entered the bathroom a wave of déjà vu hit her.

_"Who are you?"_

_"Shouldn't matter. It won't be of much use to you because you won't live long enough to be able to use it… But I'll share anyways… It's Akumu." _

_The woman spoke confidently she remembered. Like she was sure of something…_

_"What do you mean? I was told a man was ordered to kill me. Not a woman… What – what are you here for? If you don't mind me asking… I mean, I _**_am_**_ going to be dead soon, so it shouldn't matter, right?" Orihime asked._

Orihime walked further into the bathroom and looked from the tub to the shower to the mirror and to the blood on the floor. Her blood.

_Akumu was on her in a second, unsheathing her katana and knocking Orihime back into the shower. Her head crashed into the glass door. The collision created a large, booming sound – one that got Ichigo's attention – and glass cut into Orihime's skull. _

_Akumu didn't give her time to recover and sent her flying towards the mirror. Orihime flipped backwards and landed on the balls of her feet, right on the counter, before she could crash into the glass. Orihime flash-stepped to the bathroom door, in hopes of finding her husband for help, as she was in no position to fight in her condition as of present… Akumu blocked her way._

_"Neru!" Akumu cried and swept her arm in a large arc in front of Orihime's face. Orihime felt cool air rush into her face and she inhaled a gas that held an unusual odor. Orihime staggered back a few steps before regaining her composure and kicking in the chest. Orihime threw her hand to the right and her Santen Kesshun slammed Akumu into the wall. Orihime ran for her target again and just as she reached the door, just as the door knob came into her reach, she was yanked back. She hit the counter and fell on her hands and knees. As she stood up again, she felt nauseous. _

Orihime touched the wound on her head and looked at the blood that now marked her skin. She touched the back of her skull and found it slick with the wet substance. She took a step forward and accidentally stepped on glass. Backing away and observing the floor, she cocked her head to the side and frowned at the bloody glass on the floor.

_Orihime screamed as she landed on glass that slid through her thigh. Cutting through her like a knife slicing butter, the glass impaled her easily. Orihime pulled it out with a grunt. She saw, out of the corner of her eye, blood run down her leg as she struggled to right herself. She felt a sharp pain in her abdomen region and placed a glowing hand on her stomach._

_**This**__ baby _**_would_**_ survive…_

_At her new resolve, a tiny shield appeared on her stomach. Her powers would help this baby and their master and all others that she loved the same…_

_"No you don't… _**_Just die already!_**_" screeched Akumu._

The events all came rushing back to her as she scanned the bathroom one last time. They had come for her and she had fought upon the surprise attack. Now she remembered. So many thoughts and questions trickled into her head as the night's events came back to her in tidbits…

_"You got lucky."_

_She hit Orihime in the temple, effectively knocking her out in the process. Her vision became blurred and the bathroom and blonde lady came in and out of focus as she blacked out…_

Orihime ran from the bathroom and down the stairs. She gripped her side as the pain in her body became over bearing…

She ran through the house with the little bit of energy she had left and felt all of the different spiritual pressures lingering in different areas of the house. It seemed that everyone had made a visit to the Kurosaki household that night. She screamed out names but never got a response.

"Ichigo!" she tried again as she ran into the backyard. The evidence left behind around her property would suggest war, but she knew that it just meant her friends had tried to protect her and her family…

The pain was killing her and she still had the baby to worry about.

"Ayame. Sho'" she whispered. "I need you to heal me."

She waited but her precious Shun Shun Rikka did not come out to greet their master.

"Ayame? Shun'ō? Why aren't you answering me?" she panicked.

Orihime gripped her hair with both hands as she tried to calm down. It wouldn't be healthy for her or the baby if she stressed out any more than what she was…

Three lazy claps grabbed her attention and she looked up at a man standing across from her…

"Welcome back, Orihime…"

**.**

**_~X~_**

**.**

Ichigo grunted as he slowly got up. He looked around him and saw that he was in the front yard. He had landed in the fountain in front of the house and had crushed it with the impact of his crash. He was soaked and the water was spurting all over him…

Ichigo sat up and looked at his house. The windows were broken, the doors were hanging off the hinges, and there were holes all over the place. The front of the house looked like shit and he was positive the inside was no better. It looked like a freaking tornado hit only his house. Or maybe the midget stopped by and was angry and pregnant again? The last time she was pregnant and angry, she did cause some extensive damage. He sighed as he thought about how long it would take to fix and clean everything.

But then the Shinigami hybrid remembered that he was punched through his house as he was addressing Kaien and that no, it wasn't Rukia who did this. He sighed and thought that it might not have been a bad thing if Rukia had done… Being her superior officer, he could have dished out any punishment he thought necessary…

"Damn tourists…" he deadpanned with an eye roll…

**.**

**_~X~_**

**.**

**Fin! **

**I know that is a really bad place to stop but I needed to otherwise part 2 of this would have been really short. I am sorry. I know it's a bad spot to end…**

**Akumu means nightmare(s) in Japanese.**

**Neru means sleep in Japanese**

**Daburu means double (of) in Japanese.**

**Hōka-han means arsonist in Japanese. **

**Kasai No Sen Taiyō means Fire of a Thousand Suns in Japanese. **

**Hakai means destruction in Japanese. **

**Sakkaku means illusion(s) in Japanese. **

**Zettai-Shitsunen means absolute oblivion in Japanese.**

**I will be updating my other fics. soon as well. Monday I will update ****_Remembrance_**** most likely. Thursday I will update ACTDF… ****_Pushing Boundaries_**** will be updated soon. **

**Mistakes will be fixed when I can get to them…**

**Questions? Comments? Concerns? **

**I.K.**


End file.
